Blossoming of a Leaf
by Krokador
Summary: Sakura and Ino are now Chuunins, and the war with the village of the Hawk is over. However things never stay peaceful for long for Shinobis, and Sakura is about to face yet another challenge. Set during timeskip, Sequel to Promise of a Leaf. InoxSaku
1. Chapter 1: Bomb Hands

**_Author's Note: Well hiya's everyone. This is the sequel I've been talking about... err well the beginning of it, anyway. This took me in all a month or two to write, right? Well in fact, it didn't take me much more than like 7 hours, I wrote most of it today. I was just pretty much blocked. So I have no idea how often I'll update. Hope you guys can deal with that. If you have not read Promise of a Leaf I strongly suggest that you go look it up, since this is a direct sequel to it. Otherwise you'll end up confused, just a tad._**

**Disclaimer: **Naruto doesn't belong to me. All our bases are belong to Masashi Kishimoto. Save a few characters... But i owe them to the Naruto-verse anyway.

**Warning(s):** I'm not gonna fool around here. This is a Yuri story (two female characters in love with each other). If that irks you up, walk away now.  
Rated T for possible violence, foul language (maybe, I don't dig cussing so much, but it could happen), angst. (Contrary to how the first part of this story, I won't focus all that much on action, if at all.) Also, ability to deal with long gaps between updates highly recommended.

_**As a last note, I'd like to thank all my fateful readers, and everyone who's reviewed/favorited/alerted my stories. It's the kind of small thing that means a lot to a writer. Also would like to give my special thanks to DarkInu418 who's been a source of inspiration all the way through, and who's story Living With My Worse Nightmare really rocks. You should check it out /proud beta reader mode. I also owe her the title of this sequel The titles for my chapters are usually taken from songs I like, this one's from Social Code. Check 'em out! And on with the show!  
**_

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Chapter 1: Bomb Hands**

The breeze blew a few orange-colored leaves up and around the two girls facing each other. There was a small crowd gathered in the clearing, some knowing what was about to happen, some had been attracted to the scene simply by curiosity. Everything was so quiet – so still… There was one blonde girl, about fifteen years old, wearing a purple tank top and skirt, standing tall, a kunai in hand, it's tip glinting in the late afternoon's sunlight. Her blue eyes reflected a determination common to none other: It was Ino Yamanaka.

The other girl had her pink hair loosely flaying about in the wind, flapping against the side of her face, complimenting her deep green eyes and large forehead perfectly. Her red vest was zipped up to prevent it from catching in the breeze, and her medic skirt was tied tight around her waist. She too held a kunai in one hand, eyes focused on her target. Sakura Haruno was as ready as ever.

As if on cue, both girls dashed towards each other in womanly fury, their eyes sparkling and lips smirking at the challenge before them. The weapons collided, resulting in an echoing clang that would resonate all through the fight that was about to follow. The first hit landed, every movement following was faster, more fierce, and soon it was an all out brawl between the two kunoichis. Then all of a sudden movement stopped, and as the dust landed it was revealed that the two girls were simply caught in a power struggle. The audience was divided as to who they should root for. Dasane Hanmaru's voice resonated higher than everyone's. "C'mon Ino get'er!"

Unexpectedly, Iketetsomaru's resounded even louder. "Go Haruno!"

"You won't get me, pig!" Sakura let out, through gritted teeth, pushing a little harder, but not gaining any ground.

"You can't win, forehead!" Ino retorted, pushing a little harder herself, and apparently managing to gain an advantage. She grinned a bit wider and pushed on, only to find herself stumbling forwards as the clone she had been holding dissipated. Her head whipped around, her eyes desperately scanning the area for the pink haired girl she was fighting, but before she could realize what was happening, a hand gripped her right foot and dragged her into the ground. Then before she could even think about freeing herself, high boots appeared at her eye level, and as she looked up, the blonde could see the crossed arms of her opponent, and the smug look on her face behind it.

"That was a cheap trick…" She muttered to no one's attention in particular, highly conscious of the disappointed sighs coming from the already dissipating crowd. They had expected the fight to last longer than that, and Ino could understand them. "Hey, we're ninjas. It's all about stealth and surprise. Don't forget that." Sakura answered, holding her hand out to help her friend extirpate herself from the ground. She was a little startled when her arm was yanked down instead and she ended up splayed on the ground with her revenge-thirsty girlfriend straddling her hips.

"You won't get away with that so easily." Ino said with a grin, leaning down to put a kiss on the helpless girl's lips. Sakura whimpered before accepting the kiss, but she didn't let things get any further.

"Ino… I just don't feel like it right now…" She said half-heartedly as she pushed her girlfriend off of her, and went back to a standing position. Ino was a little slower at getting back up, and she did it with a pout. "You're never in the mood lately, Sakura…" She trailed off, conscious that what she had just said – even if it was just some harmless whining – had just struck the girl in front of her just as hard as a punch she could've thrown. Maybe even more. But there was a limit to how much she could accept for Sakura to feel that way, and this had reached it.

"I'm sorry Ino…" came Sakura's weak reply, her eyes were now cast to the ground. The brave look she had worn earlier replaced by sadness, and a hint of pain. "I just still can't believe I…"

"Oh come off of it Haruno! I forgave you for Hokage's sake!" Ino said, slightly exasperated, searching Sakura's eyes with her own, hoping to make contact and mark her words.

"I know you did!" Sakura nearly shouted, looking up all of a sudden, meeting Ino's gaze and colliding with this mixed feeling of apprehension and knowledge she'd get when she knew Ino was right, but still couldn't bring herself to accept it. "But I still can't…"

This time Ino couldn't take it anymore. "No right, you never can deal with your own mistakes like anyone else. You keep blaming yourself. Even after everyone's moved on, you're still dwelling in the past! I've had more than enough Sakura." She almost yelled, her face now inches from the pink haired girl's face, her eyes reading the shifting of emotion on her face, and seeing that highly expected guilt ridden expression. She sighed, deciding to give Sakura a chance to pick herself up and show that it wasn't all that she was about.

At a loss, Sakura leaned in and kissed Ino's lips in what she wanted to be a deep, meaningful kiss. But it was broken only half a second later by a raging Ino shoving her away. "This is not what it's all about Sakura!" Ino closed her eyes for a moment, trying to control her anger. She loved Sakura so much, yet the past few weeks had been hell for them. She had tried every single thing she could've thought of to help her friend get over it, the sparring match had been her last idea – her last resort. And that had failed just as well. She was now thorn between feeling extremely sorry for her friend, and wanting to tear her apart for not even showing the slightest improvement after all the efforts she had put into it.

"I love you Ino…" Sakura's voice didn't sound as convinced as she had wanted it to. It was strained and shaky from the tears that threatened to spill from her eyes. More pleading than loving. Ino opened her eyes nonetheless, her gaze wary as if she was in disbelief, but a small smile crawled onto her lips as she nodded and proceeded to hug her friend tightly. Sakura hugged back just as tight, her mind set on not letting go. "I'm sorry." She repeated, tears now flowing down her cheeks, as she held onto her blonde everything as if her life depended on it – and to a point, it did.

"I love you Sakura, please never doubt that." Ino said softly as she started stroking Sakura's back in a gentle, comforting motion. She did hope that her message had gone across this time.

"I'm so sorry…" Sakura said again as she pulled back slightly – just enough to look Ino in the eyes. "It's just that… everything I do as of late, I seem to fail. I break things, I hurt people… I can't seem to do anything right…" Ino cut her off.

"Do you think that wallowing in self-pity will fix any of that?" She asked, holding onto Sakura's gaze. The young Haruno flinched slightly.

"No." She answered sadly. She knew that Ino was right. She knew that she couldn't keep doing what she was doing. But she didn't know how to change anything either. "But I don't know what to do to fix it." She finally admitted, at the same time swallowing the lump in her throat.

Ino smiled faintly at her, realizing how big a step Sakura had just taken. She had just asked for help, and she wasn't going to deny her that. "First of all, forehead…" She started in a slightly mocking tone, in an attempt to relieve some of the tension of the moment. She then poked her friend's forehead for emphasis. "You need to stop worrying so much about everything. When you've made a mistake, do you enjoy when people keep reminding you of it?" Sakura sniffled and shook her head in answer, and Ino ruffled up her hair a bit as she smiled a bit brighter. "It's the same with the people that were affected by your mistakes. They don't need to be reminded of it every step they make. Especially if they forgave you already."

Sakura nodded and nearly giggled at the hand in her hair. She closed her eyes for a bit, collecting herself and printing the information to her memory, hoping she wouldn't forget these few words of advice any time soon. She was about to reopen them when warm lips pressed against her own and her body was enveloped in the warmest of touches. She decided to listen to what Ino had said, and let herself be engulfed in the scent of her girlfriend, melting in the warmth of her body, nearly dying at the sensuality of the kiss. And she realized that Ino was right, she had to enjoy what she had instead of dwelling on what she had lost.

--

The next morning brought with itself a bright sunlight and the incessant chirping of the autumn birds. Sakura yawned, stretched, and then decided that, since this was her day off of training with Tsunade, she could idle in bed for a little while longer with Ino, who she was staying over with. Little did she expect to wrap her arm around, well, nothing as she turned around. Her heavy eyelids slowly lifted over her still sleepy emerald eyes, noting while trying to adjust to the light that Ino was, in fact, not there. When her vision became clearer, she also spotted a note on the blonde's pillow.

_Our team was called early this morning for an emergency mission. I didn't have the heart to wake you up since you were sleeping so peacefully, and I hadn't seen you like that in forever. I don't know the specifics yet, but I'm probably going to be gone a little while. Just ask Tsunade for details. And don't forget to smile, forehead. Your smile is precious to me, even when I can't see it – you know I feel it._

_Good luck with the training, I love you._

_Ino_

Sakura read the note twice, to make sure this wasn't just a bad dream. She then laid sprawled on her back and let her head sink into the pillow wearily. Things were starting to look up the last day, but it was all thanks to Ino. What all was she going to do without her there? Especially since this whole situation had been the cause of a prolonged absence on Ino's part too. One that had nearly gotten her to get killed on a mission as well. Her mind drifted off to those times without her consent, and she once again relived the memory, only this time, she was intent on **not** repeating the same mistakes, and so she tried to learn the lesson.

...

_It had been two months since the last time Konoha had had news from Team 10, who had left for a reconnaissance mission in the country of Mist, which should've normally taken a few weeks at most, yet they had been gone for a good fifteen weeks already. Sakura's concentration was failing. She was missing Ino so bad, and the prospect of her friend not ever coming back from the mission was terrifying. _

_She had been assigned on a mission with Hanmaru and Ike the day before, and had nearly gotten killed in a small skirmish with a team from another country that they had spotted spying. Hanmaru had left her and Ike alone to bring the spies to the Hokage, not wanting to interrupt the mission for something so silly. And Ike had confronted her about how she lacked any motivation to survive on the battlefield. She had instantly broken down and started crying, and the young Ematai had instantly switched into comfort mode, understanding how the loss of someone precious could affect someone. He too had had to deal with that kind of heartbreak, and in a desperate attempt at making Sakura feel better, had used an henge Jutsu to look like Ino. He remembered how he had wished to say goodbye to his family, see them and touch them just once more, and thought that was what Sakura needed._

_Sakura had been confused at first. She knew this wasn't the real Ino, and that whatever she would tell this version of her, the real one wouldn't know. Would never get her chance to hold Sakura in her arms once more. And as unfair as that sounded, she still couldn't let this opportunity go. She just couldn't._

_So she cuddled up into Iketetsomaru's arms. Nothing wrong there, she'd have done that with him as he comforted her, anyway. The only thing she hadn't calculated was that Ike was good at what he did. So damn good at it that even Kiba's nose wouldn't tell the difference in scent between him and Ino at that moment. She hadn't taken into account that she'd somehow float through this dream, half-awake, and for a moment believe it really was Ino, there holding her. It didn't help when Ike, with a perfect replica of Ino's voice, told Sakura that she loved her. Sakura had felt the urge to kiss Ino, not knowing if it was a reality anymore. She thought Ike had tried to stop her, but his own feelings were clashing with his sense of duty, and for a moment they were Ino and Sakura kissing, passionately. _

_Then the lack of concentration made Iketetsomaru's jutsu go out. Yet the kiss kept going, hands began roaming, and Sakura, in search of comfort, didn't even care, although she had noticed, that she was doing this with a guy. Who would never be Ino. Whom she thought she'd never see again, anyway._

_Things hadn't gone too far, only because Hanmaru had come back and caught them all over each other. The look he had given them was enough to strike guilt into both Sakura and Ike's hearts, but they didn't understand why he looked so gloomy. It's when they had finished their mission and gone home that the whole of what they had done had engulfed them and marked the beginning of what was to be Sakura and Ino's biggest trial. Nothing had been hidden, Sakura couldn't bring herself to believe what she had done was true, nor forgive herself for even thinking it had happened, but Ike had been the first to apologize to Ino. And she didn't have a choice but to admit to it herself._

_Ino had cried in front of them, asking why over and over again. She had fallen to her knees, head in her hands, trying to control her sobs. It didn't help the scene that it was raining hard that day. Sakura had gotten to her knees as well, and hugged her friend real tight at that point. She wanted to say how glad she was that Ino was back. Alive. She wanted to tell the girl that she still loved her beyond everything. But no words came. _

_Ino had returned the embrace however, hanging onto her with all the strength she could summon. The blonde started whispering "I love you." Over and over again, as if trying to convince herself and Sakura at the same time. Now crying, Sakura echoed Ino's words, putting in as much conviction as she could find, until a single "I'm so sorry." Escaped her lips. Ino had sniffled and pulled back slightly to look at Sakura's face, scanning it thoroughly, as if trying to find a flaw in it – or as if trying to commit it to her mind for eternity. "I know…" She finally said, biting her lip. "I understand." She then added, before once again hugging tight to her girlfriend. "I love you so much…"_

...

Things had gone back to normal, mostly. Ino had forgiven the incident, not quite willing to have to get rid of the person she cared the most about because a mission of hers had dragged on for so long. She wasn't about to give up on what had been so hard to get to begin with, anyway. And she probably didn't trust herself not to do the same thing if Sakura would be gone for so long. But Sakura still couldn't get over it.

The pink haired girl sighed and then glared at the window, as if blaming the sunlight for bringing the memories back to her once more. "I need to go see Tsunade." She said to herself. After a few more moments of staring at the ceiling, she finally threw her legs over the bed and proceeded to find where she'd left her day clothes the last night, since being dressed in one's pajamas wasn't exactly a proper way to present oneself in front of a teacher and Hokage, even on an off day. Or a day off…

"Two or three days at most…" Was Tsunade disinterested answer to Sakura's question about how long Ino would be gone. She was well absorbed into a few tomes on her desk and couldn't seem to be bothered with anything else. Sakura sighed and went for the door, knowing she wouldn't get any other information from the Hokage, but she was interrupted about halfway past the door by Shizune's voice. "Hold on Sakura.." She said, causing the pink haired girl to turn her head towards the voice. "I know this is your day off and all but… I need you for something, if you don't mind."

Sakura was about to decline, with the excuse that she really needed her day off with the latest emotional strain, and then she realized that keeping her mind busy while Ino wasn't there was probably a better idea than just sulking alone, at home, with a bucket of ice cream and a cheesy movie. "Aye." She agreed, fully turning around. Ready to accept the task Shizune would give her.

--

The rest of the day went by rather quick, and so did the next one as Sakura busied herself at the hospital and with a few kids at the academy, performing her training half-heartedly, her mind drifting off to Ino from time to time, in anticipation of the blonde's return. She had the best plan to welcome her girlfriend back, consisting of a slightly romantic dinner, and a sensual back rub to relieve the strains from the traveling – and that would lead up to more if things were to go that way. She was quite set on showing Ino that she was ready to move on, and that she indeed, wanted to spend the rest of her life with the blonde. But when she didn't get home on the second day, nor on the third, Sakura started to worry. A lot.

The fourth day's morning, under a moody sky, Sakura had the firm intention of asking Tsunade about the advancement of Ino's mission. She was on her way to the tower when she spotted a familiar hint of purple and platinum blonde turning a corner. Frowning, she followed up to find Ino sitting and chatting with the rest of Team 10. None of them looked like they were just back from a mission though. "Uhm Ino?" She hesitantly said, waving her hand shyly, not really understanding why she felt so uneasy all of a sudden.

"Huh, forehead? You need something?" The blonde asked, frowning slightly, her eyes questioning why Sakura would talk to her. Sakura's frown widened.

"Wh-when did you get back from your mission?" She tried to ask without looking too hurt. If Ino was playing a game, she didn't want to fall victim of it.

"Sometime in the late afternoon yesterday? Why would you even care?" Ino asked, visibly annoyed. Sakura flinched.

"But… I thought you would've cromths sheaf…" Shikamaru put his hand over Sakura's mouth before she could finish her sentence, earning a curious glance from both his teammates, and a questioning glare from the pink haired girl. He smiled sheepishly and whispered into Sakura's ear. "Ino was caught in some weird jutsu during the mission, and lost part of her memory in the process. Tsunade told us to not try to force stuff into her mind, since this would most probably confuse her more than anything and alter the way she'll remember things if she ever gets her memory back."

This time Sakura's eyes grew wide in shock, which increased the confusion visible on Ino's face. "What's that you're telling her Shika?" She asked her teammate, not too sure what all to think about the situation. It was the Nara boy's turn to grow wide eyes as he raked his brain for a good excuse. Thankfully Sakura was faster than him. "He just nicely warned me that you might not be in the best of moods for me to try and be friendly with you. " Or maybe not thankfully…

"Nara Shikamaru! My womanly condition does not concern miss Haruno, you hear me?" The blonde shouted hysterically, causing Shikamaru to hide behind Sakura cursing under his breath. 'You're troublesome, Haruno…' He said, earning a shrug from Sakura.

"Look, Ino…" Sakura interrupted, hoping to save Shikamaru and at the same time keep her composure. The Yamanaka girl raised an eyebrow at her. Sakura sighed. "I'm sorry about everything." That was true no matter what stage of their lives Ino remembered, even though it was pretty obvious it was during the time they were rivals that the blonde had regressed.

"Hn." Was Ino's answer, who's pride somehow held from apologizing back just yet. Sakura raked her brain for something to say, memories of that dinner she had planned for them both surging up and leaving a void in the pit of her stomach. The idea wasn't too bad though. "How about we just go out for dinner and try to… fix things up and catch up a bit? I missed you…" Once again, a statement which Sakura knew was the whole truth, and Ino would probably be oblivious to most of what it meant. But it was still something.

Seeing that Ino was hesitating, Sakura added that the meal would be on her. That was enough to make the girl accept, to Sakura's partial relief. "Just meet me here at six tonight then." Sakura said, in an attempt to be cheerful, putting on a fake smile. Ino smiled back. "Will do."

Sakura nodded at the confirmation and then waved goodbye to the team before heading off into the direction of the Hokage tower once again. Only now, she was going to extirpate every single detail she could about Ino's condition from Tsunade, before, she thought gloomily, breaking down and crying every last tear in her body about losing Ino the way she just did. The prospect wasn't bright, but she was Haruno Sakura. She was going to fight to the end for what she loved and believed in. Even if that meant dealing with an Ino that didn't love her anymore.


	2. Chapter 2: The Shortest Line

**Chapter 2: The Shortest Line**

Any activity in the Hokage's office was interrupted by the door literally flying open as one pretty determined pink haired girl stormed in, unaware that she was interrupting something. Until she saw Inoichi Yamanaka waving at her. Blinking, Sakura took in her surroundings and then froze. Nara Shikaku was there staring at her absently, as well as Akimichi Chouza who had an eyebrow raised. At least none of them looked too annoyed, because Tsunade's boiling anger didn't look like it would be easy to deal with. She was glaring at her student and wearing one of her not-so-rare '_You are in trouble' _ scowl.

"What is the urgency of your visit, Haruno?" The Hokage asked calmly, reaching for a bottle of sake on her desk. Sakura's face practically turned white, as she knew nothing in what she wanted to know was an emergency. She had no excuse. The older woman picked up her bottle and stared harder at her. "I-I… I'm sorry Tsunade-sama." Sakura finally said, bowing down slightly and then back tracking, quite intent on getting away before her sensei's anger exploded.

"This is actually an interesting coincidence, Sakura." Inoichi interrupted, a sheepish smile on his face as he shot a glance at the Hokage, waiting for the Godaime's approval in continuing. Her left eye twitched as she looked at him then to Sakura, and that was his signal. "We were just about to hear the details on what happened to Ino. I think it is only fair, as Ino's closest friend, that you'd be informed on her huh… condition? And what'll be done about it." As he finished, Inoichi's sheepish expression had turned to sad, and he had his eyes cast down.

It was quiet for a moment, until Shikaku shook his head and spoke. "I believe she already knows a good part of the story, since she's here." Sakura frowned and gave an inquisitive look at Tsunade, her earlier mistake retrograded to a lesser priority for the moment. The woman simply sighed and rubbed her forehead. "The jutsu's effects have been found to cause gradual loss of memory in the subject. This could prove extremely lethal during a high priority mission, or a war, if it was to be used at a wide scale. Your mission is pretty straightforward. Find the bum who invented that jutsu, capture him, and bring his butt back here so we can find how to reverse its effects. Questions?" Still frowning, Sakura observed how Inoichi shook his head, Shikaku rolled his eyes and Chouza shoved a handful of chips in his mouth. _So typical…_ she thought despite the situation.

"Alright." Tsunade continued, putting down her untouched sake bottle. "You leave at dusk. Dismissed." She paused and looked at the pink haired girl still standing inertly in the middle of her office. "Sakura, I want to have a word with you."

It only took half a second for the original InoShikaCho trio to exit the room, leaving the two ladies in it to their business. Sakura gulped as fear struck her once again, the look in the Hokage's eyes serious enough that it would probably scare away a Legendary Senning called Jiraiya. But Sakura was too scared to even move. "Sit down." Tsunade instructed, getting up from her own chair as she did so, watching Sakura intently. The young girl's body moved as if it had a will of its own and took place on what was usually Shizune's chair. The older woman walked to her, not letting any emotion filter out for the moment, and then when she got close enough that Sakura was actually flinching, she reached out and slammed her hand down on the desk, causing the pinkette to jump and almost fall out of her chair in surprise.

"I'm sorry for not telling you about Ino before…" Tsunade began surprisingly softly, taking a sitting position on the edge of the desk. Sakura looked up at her and frowned. "I should have summoned you last night, when we figured out something was wrong… Then you could've at least seen her while she still remembered your… thing."

Sakura squinted and shifted in her chair uncomfortably, then blinking as the information made its way through her mind. The part about the jutsu making it's receiver lose their memory _gradually _coming back to her, and hitting her like a brick bundle falling on top of her head. Her body slumped in the chair and she started staring into an imprecise nothingness in front of her, occasionally blinking to chase some dirt out of her eyes. Only even with the blinking, her eyes still started to water up at the thought of what was going to happen. Tsunade bit her lip as she watched the pain go through her student's eyes, and in an attempt to show she was truly sorry, put her hand on the girl's shoulder. "We'll find a way to bring her back to normal." She lamely offered, hoping that the words would at least shake Sakura out of her shocked state. And it did: The pink haired girl broke down into violent sobs, holding her head in her hands as she kept repeating 'Why?' between sobs. Tsunade couldn't stand looking at her like this and stood up, grabbing the girl's elbow and lifting her up to pull her into a motherly embrace.

It took a few minutes, but Sakura eventually calmed down. It's sniffling that she looked up to see her teacher sympathetically smiling at her. Sakura sighed and shook her head softly. "I invited her to have dinner with me tonight… Will she even remember that?"

Tsunade patted the pink hair softly and nodded. "I believe she is still able to function, and her short term memory hasn't been affected too much, I think." She stated, however slightly unsure of her assumption. Sakura's brows furrowed at that.

"So she might not even remember me at some point, but if I tell her we should have a sparring match in the afternoon, she'll remember that much?" Tsunade sighed and shook her head. Sakura nodded.

"I just don't know Sakura…" She paused and looked out the window, glancing at the kids from the academy playing outside without a worry in the world. The birds that were flying by totally oblivious to what was happening. The pain her student was in, and that affected her too. This world felt so big all of a sudden. Konoha was a heavy responsibility. She wished she could just run away from it right then, and solve that mystery by herself. "For the next few days, weeks if it comes to that… I want you to stay around Ino as much as possible. If only to prevent people from confusing her, and making sure she doesn't do anything stupid. Her intelligent memory might go blank, but nothing can erase cognitive memory. She'll remember you even though she doesn't. In the end you'll probably be the only person she'll trust." Tsunade winced knowingly as she said this. "I know it's going to be really hard on you. But I'm sure you wouldn't want me asking anyone else."

"I can do it." Sakura said firmly, resolve showing on her face. Tsunade nodded at that and released her hold on the girl, going back to sitting on the edge of the desk. Sakura also sat back down in the chair and for a moment both women were silent, thinking things through. At some point Sakura simply got up and started to walk towards the exit of the room. Tsunade acknowledged the movement, but didn't say anything to the girl. Instead she reached for the bottle of sake on her desk once again, and this time took a long gulp out of it. This was going to be a long day.

Sakura walked out of the office at a slow pace. Thinking things through once more. The sun had taken cover behind a bundle of grayish clouds, and the air smelt like rain – heavy and humid. The echo of a school bell could be heard into the distance, both cheers and disappointed yelps resounding soon after. She couldn't help but smile faintly at the memories of her school days with Ino. How she had been protected by the blonde when she was made fun of. And she started wondering how long it would take for Ino to remember her as a friend, instead of a rival.

_Well let's see, she was hit by the jutsu probably two days ago… Sasuke left the village what… a year ago? So she probably loses her memory at a rate similar to a year in two days… Means in less than a week, I'll be her best friend again, right? _She sighed and kicked a rock, her brain not quite letting her work out the equation of how Ino could remember her, and not remember her, at the same time. How un-logical it felt that Ino would remember to be there for dinner, but not that they had had a few ones together beforehand. It was all so confusing.

"Owww! Earth to Sakura, you have inhuman strength remember?" Kiba's voice came from seemingly far away, but when Sakura actually focused her vision, he was right in front of her, eyeing her strangely. "Something's up Haruno?" He asked, concern suddenly furrowing his brows. Akamaru whined quietly by his side, the dog was now reaching about mid-thigh to his master.

"Oh, I'm sorry Kiba I didn't know you were here…" Sakura said apologetically. Kiba simply shook his head.

"I doubt you knew anyone lived in this world anymore, just a few moments ago." The boy stated with a grin. Sakura simply lowered her gaze to the ground, and his grin faltered. "Hey huh… wanna see me and Akamaru's new move?" He offered, remembering how he had managed to cheer her up ever so slightly the last time he had seen Sakura in this state. But Sakura shook her head no.

"I'm sorry Kiba, I'm just not in the mood for that today."

The boy shrugged and appeared thoughtful for a second. Sakura was about to walk off on him when he stopped her. "How about ramen then? My treat." Sakura looked up at him and raised an eyebrow, causing Kiba to shove his hands in his pocket and shift uncomfortably. "Hey I'm not asking you out on a date or anything. I just thought food would make you feel better?"

_Guys and their stomachs…_ Sakura giggled softly and shook her head again. "Thank you Kiba, but I'm not hungry either." Akamaru whined again and nuzzled his master's hand. Kiba shrugged it off and gave a comforting smile.

"Well, if you are ever looking for someone to talk to, y'know I'm here, right?" He asked Sakura as he patted his dog's head. Sakura smiled faintly and bent down to scratch under Akamaru's chin, earning a grateful growl in answer. She then straightened up and looked back at Kiba. "Yes, thanks. I'll see you around!" She said, taking a step past the boy. He turned back and grinned at her, a bright, wolf-like grin. Sakura felt it rather than saw it, and she smiled a little more herself. She wasn't alone in this, and that was a reassuring thing to know.

She spent a bit of time training after her encounter with Kiba, hoping to clear her mind a bit. And it did work. She then took a shower and put on slightly more formal clothes – clothes she had bought while shopping with Ino, about two weeks ago. She was already imagining how Ino would react at seeing these clothes, that Sakura had been reluctant to even try on at first. _'These look like clothes I would buy… When did you get such a sense of fashion Sakura?'_ She smirked at that imaginary remark. It did sound like something Ino would say. Especially if they were in their rival phase in the blonde's mind.

The sky had cleared up during the afternoon, and the warmth helped Sakura keep her cool ever so slightly. Enough for her not to go and cancel everything. At five thirty, she was at the set encounter point, pondering on what she was supposed to say to her friend so as to not confuse her too much. She ended up making mental notes on what **not** to mention however, since that sounded like a better idea. At five to, she started wondering if Ino would show up. At six, she got up from the bench she was sitting on, and started pacing. Worry started to make it's way through her and she bit her lip thinking that Ino could've forgot about it, after all. At ten past six, Shikamaru appeared around a corner, dragging a reluctant blonde wearing a purple dress behind him. "You can feel bad about forgetting about it Ino, but showing yourself late is better than never." He was saying calmly, despite his expression being relatively annoyed. Ino whimpered. "But she's going to hate my guts for it!" Ino retorted before realizing she was within earshot of her friend as she saw a flash of pink reflect under the late afternoon sun. She suddenly went quiet and blushed, removing her hand from Shikamaru's grasp and waving him away with a scowl. The boy rolled his eyes and left, hands now in his pockets whispering a 'have fun' at Ino's intention.

Ino walked the rest of the way to the waiting Sakura and blushed some more as Sakura looked her up and down in awe. "Heh, Shikamaru made me wear it. I kept telling him that it was just a dinner with you, and not some silly date, but he just insisted."

Sakura blinked and did what she could to hide the pain she felt at that. _It **is **a date, or well, that's what it was **supposed** to be until she lost her memory… _"You look pretty…" Sakura let out, smiling warmly. Ino cocked her head to the side, observing the pink haired girl intently before accepting the compliment.

"Well thank you fore- Sakura." She corrected her name calling at the very last moment and smiled sheepishly. Sakura smiled back and giggled. It was still good to hear the nickname from her friend. "You look pretty damn good yourself. Looks like something I would pick out. Your sense of fashion sure has improved." The last line caused Sakura to burst out in laughter, to the confusion of the blonde. When the chuckles subsided slightly, Sakura looked up and smiled at Ino.

"I was a hundred percent sure you'd say something like that." She explained, grinning. Ino rolled her eyes and wrapped an arm around Sakura's shoulders in a friendly manner, even though the movement felt somewhat familiar to her. When she felt Sakura lean into her touch and start leading the way towards the restaurant something in her wanted to push her friend away and look at her weird, yet another part of her enjoyed the warmth and closeness of her friend. She stumbled on her own feet slightly in her confusion, causing her to lose the contact in favor of being caught before falling.

"Hey are you okay Ino?" Sakura asked as she helped her friend straighten up. Ino dodged the other girl's gaze and let out a 'hpmf'. "I'm fine forehead. Perfectly fine." But she knew she wasn't. Ever since she had woken up that morning, things had gotten from weird to extremely unusual. Starting out with Shikamaru actually offering his help to her. Then following with Sakura asking her out. And where the hell was Sasuke? And Naruto?

Sakura saw the pain in Ino's eyes and had to resist cupping the girl's cheek with her hand. If anything, that would simply weird her out some more. So she focused on getting the blonde to the restaurant, giving her what she wanted to look like a comforting smile. "Alright, let's go! I'm hungry!" She tried to say cheerfully. Ino shook her head and giggled.

"You need to eat less Sakura, you're getting fat." Sakura scoffed.

"Look who's talking, pig!"

That comment made Ino look down at herself, and that's when she realized that, indeed, she didn't have the slimmest waist she had ever had. Sakura noted the motion and bit her lip. She had been the one to force Ino to stop dieting so much, but her friend wouldn't remember that. "It's a joke, Ino. You're perfect." Sakura tried to catch her slip, but the damage was already done.

"You're right, I'm getting fat."

Sakura shook her head and grabbed the blonde's arm, dragging her along. "No." She said as she turned a corner and stopped in front of the place where she had reserved a table for them both. "You're healthy. That's different." And without giving Ino a chance to reply, she pulled her inside the place.

It was a small quiet restaurant. The lights were not too aggressive, yet you could see what was going on in your plate. The waiters were well dressed and the other customers all looked pretty decent. No family with annoying balling kids. No punks raging at the bar as they were watching a baseball game. It was a change from Ichiraku's, that was for sure. And Ino noted it with a frown. "Sakura? This place looks rather expensive…" She stated as they were sat at a table for two, face to face. Sakura asked for two glasses of water before answering Ino.

"Naw, we… I've been here before. The food is good and the prices are fair. " Sakura smiled and Ino simply frowned more. Sakura raised an eyebrow at her behavior. "Is something the matter Ino?" The pinkette asked, ignoring the fact that she had once again just… slipped.

"You said we…" Ino stated matter-of-factly. Sakura's gaze shifted slightly, but she remained calm. "Yeah huh, my mother and me. I took her here for her birthday." It was half a lie, since she had really been there for someone's birthday. Only it had been theirs, and not her mother's… Sakura's train of thoughts slipped into that night and she smiled despite herself. It was their five months anniversary. And it had been such a great night. Ino had been beautiful, breathtaking even. And they had enjoyed their best meal in what had seemed like years, since they were always gone on missions and such. The night that had followed had been memorable too…The feeling of holding Ino close to her. So close...

_'Sakura!'_

Sakura's relaxed at the memory. For a moment everything was going well again in her world.

'Sakura!!'

She closed her eyes and sighed. She would not live another night like that in quite a while, most probably.

"Hey forehead wake up! The waiter's waiting for your order!"

Sakura snapped back to reality and blinked a few times, trying to chase the sleepiness and content out of her eyes as best as she could, not wanting Ino to see her like that. She then turned to the waiter and gave her order. The young man noted everything down and smiled broadly at the two woman before hovering off to the next table. Ino prodded Sakura on the arm and as soon as he was out of earshot, whispered to her friend. "Does he know you or something?"

Sakura was about to say yes, and then remembered, probably not for the last time, that Ino wouldn't remember what had happened. So she decided on a teasing answer instead. "Well aren't we a little jealous Yamanaka?"

Ino huffed and crossed her arms over her chest defensively. "Me, jealous of you? Are you out of your mind? You can go with any boy that you like for all that I care. As long as you leave Sasuke alone."

That last sentence was a blow directly to the heart for Sakura. She couldn't hate Ino for it however, since the blonde was oblivious to everything that had happened since Sasuke was gone. All she could do was try to keep her composure and not let it show that something was off. A task at which she failed. "Did I say something wrong?" Ino asked, leaning over the table to look Sakura in the eye. Sakura gulped and shook her head quietly, not quite daring to speak up. Ino frowned some more and reached out for Sakura's hand, giving it a light squeeze. "Did… something happen between you and Sasuke?"

Even though the boy had been gone for a while, and that Sakura had gotten used to life without him, the wound was still there, and she still missed her teammate. And wasn't he the reason that she hadn't seen Naruto in over a year, too? She surely didn't want to be talking about it. Certainly not explaining it to Ino, who couldn't remember it. She shook her head and pushed the tears back in, hoping Ino would let go of the subject.

"I have amnesia, don't I huh?" Were Ino's next words, after a bit of silence. Sakura's eyes had been cast down and she hadn't noticed the blonde in front of her was crying until she heard her voice and looked up. The girls face was pleading, and if possible Sakura's heart broke down some more. She used her other hand to cover Ino and hers and nodded softly, still not daring to speak. "I bet we've been best friends again for a while already." Ino added, trying to control the sobs that threatened to break out. Sakura couldn't hold it in anymore.

"We're much more than that now, Ino…"

It took a few seconds for the whole meaning of these words to sink in, and all the while Ino was trembling yet steadily staring at Sakura. Then the shivering subsided and Ino's other hand found its way on top of the others. "You are kidding me, Haruno." She had hoped it had sounded like a statement. She wished it could pass off as a question, but all in all, it was just a desperate attempt at making sense of what was happening. "This is just a big… April's fool. I'll wake up tomorrow and everything will be back to normal, right?" This time Ino's voice was pleading.

But to her distress, Sakura's voice remained deadly serious. "Tomorrow morning… you might not even remember that we're here, together, right now. You lose more of your memory with every passing minutes, Ino."

It felt like the whole room was about to crush them both down, but Ino kept her cool and simply bit her lip, taking it all in once again. Sakura's hold on her gaze never faltered, and she recognized that little something in her deep emerald eyes that had always made her feel like everything was all right, no matter the situation. And thinking some more on it, she had always liked her friend a little more than she should have. It was that tiny spark in these beautiful loving eyes to which she decided to hold on to right then.

"So you and me are… together?" She said hesitantly, holding her breath in for the confirmation. But before Sakura could utter an answer, their orders were placed in front of them by the same waiter from earlier, who's grin grew even wider when he saw both girls holding hands. He ended up leaving the table with a wink at the girls, and Sakura could only shake her head at the man's behavior. Ino's expression switched from questioning to understanding, and she nodded softly. "I guess we are, then…"

Sakura gave Ino a sad smile and let go of the girl's hands to start picking at her plate. Her appetite wasn't so great, but then again she **was **hungry. Ino returned the smile and began eating as well, finding her salad quite tasty after all. To hell with that diet, and everything else. She had the slightest memory of what it was like to be with Sakura now, something of a feeling more than solid facts, but she knew it was there. A hint of her perfume, the warmth of her touch, the dress Shikamaru had made her wear. It all made sense now.

Her time knowing was probably short though. So tonight she was going to make sure that, no matter how much more of her memory she was going to lose, she would let Sakura know that she was there for her. She would show to her best friend… her girlfriend how much she meant to her. How much she had always meant. And she vowed to that with all her resolve, hoping to never, ever forget about the pink haired girl, no matter what happened.

After a few bites it felt like the tension had been lifted and the girls started talking about random stuff, like clothes, and guys in general, Ino trying to commit every detail she didn't remember to her memory, even if it wasn't going to help. Once finished Sakura paid the note and they got out of the building. On a whim, Ino reached out for Sakura's hand and took it in hers, pulling the girl slightly closer, earning a soft, grateful smile from the pink haired girl. She smiled back and gave the pinkette's hand a light squeeze.

Following Sakura's lead, they went for a walk in the forest before heading home – to Ino's place, anyway. Sakura eventually led them to a clearing in the forest consisting of a pond lit up by a handful of fireflies. The landscape was rather eerie under the moonlight, and Ino simply stared in awe. "Wow, do I know this place?" She asked as naturally as possible. Sakura grinned and looked up to the sky, the starlight embracing her traits in its silver halo.

"In fact, you showed it to me, just a few weeks ago. I was pretty down that day, and you had the wonderful idea of bringing me here." Sakura recalled, as if it had all been a dream. Ino moved in next to her and looked up as well, smiling as she felt the other girl's arm wrap around her waist.

"Wish this could've been the place where we had our first kiss…" she thought out loud, receiving an amused glare from Sakura. "What are you thinking about forehead?" She asked, slightly cocking her head to the side at the same time. Sakura reached up to her face and trailed her fingers down her jaw line softly.

"Close your eyes." The pink haired girl whispered. Ino leant into the touch and did as instructed, slightly tensing up at what she knew was coming. She had never done that, yet she had done it. And that was a thrill in itself.

Their lips touched ever so slightly, but the contact was intoxicating and soon they were pressed against each other tenderly, both girl's bodies molding into each other's as well. Ino had already given in to the kiss, but Sakura still had something to say before it got too heated, so she pulled back slightly and waited for the curious blonde to open her eyes and question her. Sakura smiled softly at her before whispering an explanation. "Wish granted."

Ino's deep blue eyes in which the stars were reflecting in at that exact moment were by far the most captivating thing Sakura could remember in her whole life. She simply got lost in them, Ino's loss of memory a distant concern now. She felt like she had found her love back, and even though it had only been five days, it felt like it had been months since the last time she had been held so close, by the person that meant the world to her.

Ino was about to be swallowed whole by a swarm of feelings she knew too well – yet not. Sakura's eyes were gazing into hers with all the love in the world, and she felt like she'd break down and start crying at how she couldn't have seen that sooner in her life. How she was about to forget everything of it again if she dared just close her eyes for a moment. She didn't want to lose it. She wanted the moment to last forever. Her grip on Sakura tightened ever so slightly, and the other girl must've felt it because she immediately closed the small distance between them, pressing their lips together again. And this time, Sakura didn't pull back when the kiss became more heated. She even gladly obliged when Ino had her move so that her back was resting against a tree.

Ino felt the excitement rush up the moment she knew she had Sakura pinned to the tree. Despite the fact that she couldn't remember any of her past times, she somehow knew that the pink haired girl wouldn't let herself be dominated easily. Perhaps she was the one usually leading and Sakura trusted even a version of her with large memory gaps. Her hands started roaming up and down Sakura's sides, hips and legs, and she was about to get carried away and slip her hand underneath the clothing when she was suddenly hit by a wave of uncertainty. Had they even done that before? Was that moan that escaped Sakura's lips a good or bad sign?

In all her confusion Ino hadn't realized that Sakura had put her hands over hers, and broken the kiss in favor of leaning her forehead against hers. Ino's eyes flickered open as her heartbeat slowly decreased, and she found herself gazing into the most loving and understanding eyes she'd ever seen.

"I love you, Ino." Sakura said quietly, brushing her thumbs against the back of the blonde's hands. "You don't have to do this if you don't want to…" She then added, moving her hands up the slender arms until she could wrap hers around Ino's neck. Nothing else needed to be added, they both knew what it meant.

"I love you too Sakura. I always have…" Ino trailed off. A 'but' was hanging at the tip of her tongue, but Sakura's smile erased it. They stayed like that for a couple more minutes, simply staring at each other. Sakura was committing everything to memory, knowing that tomorrow it would be a lot harder to get through. And the next day would be even worse.

"Sakura?" Ino's voice came out barely above a whisper, but since they were alone, Sakura heard it loud and clear. She raised an eyebrow to signal to Ino that she was listening. "Please promise me that, even if I forget about… us, you won't give up on me?"

Sakura sighed softly and shook her head a little, her eyes never leaving Ino's, and her hold onto her friend only strengthening. "Never again." Ino's eyebrows knit together at Sakura's answer.

"Again?"

Sakura slapped herself mentally for slipping yet again. Ino didn't need to know what had happened recently. Not in her current state. She didn't want to lose the moment, or her friend. She let her head fall back and rest on the trunk behind her, biting on her lip as she thought of a way out of this.

"Oh…" Ino's voice was heavy with understanding. She winced slightly but the expression went unnoticed by Sakura. "We made up before this happened to me, didn't we?" She trusted Sakura wouldn't be taking advantage of her loss of memory like that, but at the same time, she just needed to know. Sakura's eyes flew open at that question, hastily answering that yes, everything was fine between them before it had happened. Ino sighed in relief, but was still unsatisfied with the level of answer she was getting. "So… what happened?"

Sakura didn't want to have to word it out. But then again, it was her own fault the subject had been brought up in the first place. "You left on a mission and I thought you were dead… And I made out with Ike – a guy." Her eyes were cast down in shame at remembering her mistakes once more, but it only took a second for Ino to grab her chin and lift her face up. It was apparent in her eyes that she was sorry for bringing the matter up, but at the same time it felt like even more love was radiating from her faint smile. Sakura couldn't believe how strong their bound truly was. It was like some fairy tale.

Then the moment was broken by a yawning Ino. Sakura giggled and kissed the yawn softly, the blonde getting back to her by kissing her forehead. "You wanna go home?" Sakura asked, taking Ino's hand in hers and already leading her out of the woods. The blonde did not protest, it had been a tiring day.

Not an hour later both girls were in Ino's room, wearing their PJs, both sitting on the bed, and getting ready to say good night. "Alright." Sakura said after an incredibly long yawn from her friend. "I'll go sleep on the couch. Have a good night of sleep Ino." But Ino's hand latched onto her wrist before she could even turn around to get out of the bed. Sakura gave her a puzzled look.

"Please stay with me…"

The pink haired girl giggled softly and tucked a loose strand of blond hair behind Ino's ear. "I wish I could. But can you imagine how freaked out you'll be tomorrow morning if you wake up with me cuddled up to you?"

Ino shook her head vigorously before pulling on Sakura's arm so she would actually end up in a snuggling position. "Waking up next to you might be a shock, but isn't that the best way to help me remember that we're together?"

Sakura lost a bit of her will in the closeness she was offered, but she was still unsure. "What if you decide to kill me for it?"

"I won't." Ino assured her, smiling. Sakura sighed softly and curled up against Ino some more. She smiled when she felt an arm wrap around her shoulders. Tomorrow was a whole new day, but it was no use dwelling on it before it happened. She had Ino. She was happy.

* * *

**AN: Well, you guys should know me by now, when inspiration strikes... I can actually update at a decent pace This chapter was a wild shot though, because that's not exactly how I had planned the memory loss to be in the first place. And I have a feeling it'll get hard to manage, too. And I have this urge to go watch Adam Sandler's 50 First Date movie just to understand why... why I had to borrow from the concept instead of following my original idea. Ah well, it turned out pretty solid, I think. Although I felt like my writing style had gotten chaotic about halfway through the chapter. I don't know, I somehow lost the hang of making really deep chapters. Or maybe it's just the shift caused by how I'm spacing out things now that makes it feel weird. Bah, who cares, as long as you guys enjoy it **

**I wanna give my special thanks to Hito Rasu who's fic Game.Set.Match. was the main trigger to me writing this sequel. If it wasn't for her, making one of the girl lose her memory would have probably never crossed my mind. Also, I a really grateful for everyone who left a review, and the impressive amount of people who added me to their alerts/favorites (being favorited after only 1 chapter is an achievement for me ).**


	3. Chapter 3: Tomorrow Isn't Far Away

**Chapter 3: Tomorrow Isn't Far Away**

A groan was heard in the quiet room, a tongue slapped lazily, something shifted and the bed sheets made a ruffling sound. Then it was silent again.

The rising sunlight moved at a very slow pace through the curtains, catching up with a groggy blonde's face who, for the life of her, couldn't bring herself to open her eyes and wake up. She was having the sweetest dream. She was more comfortable than ever. She didn't ever want to wake up. So she shifted once more to avoid getting the sun in her eyes. This time it was Sakura's turn to groan, stirring awake to the scent of Ino's hair, and the feeling of Ino's breath in her neck. A yawn escaped her lips and she shifted in order to be able to watch who she was holding while she was still sleeping peacefully.

Ino had relinquished a very tight hold of her pink haired friend during the night. Arms were wrapped around Sakura's body, legs entwined, and her head was resting on Sakura's chest, which kept rising and falling at a steady pace. The look on the blonde's face reflected two things that Sakura hadn't seen so often, especially as of late. Content, and comfort. Ino had been so worried with everything lately. Sakura reached out and gently brushed her fingers through a strand of blond hair, tucking it behind Ino's ear at the same time. Ino let out a soft moan and nuzzled into Sakura's chest a little deeper, her arm shifting to grab a hold of a soft mound. She tried, in her sleeping state, to pull on the thing in order to snuggle with it.

"Uwaaaaaaah!"

"EeeaaaaAAAAAHHH!!"

Ino's eyes flew open as she yelped in answer to the cry that had come from whoever it was she was sleeping with. In her confused state, she attempted to pull away, and since she was so wrapped around Sakura, all that she managed to do was to drag the girl over her for a moment, before their temporary balance got lost and they rolled to the ground in a flurry of sheets and limbs. They didn't go far however, because the wall under the sunlit window stopped their course, and Ino came out on top of Sakura. She stared at who she had awoken next to and for a moment looked like she remembered something. Then a skeptic frown crawled upon her features.

"Forehead?"

The pink haired girl nodded slowly, the glimpse of hope disappearing with the questioning of who she was.

"Duh!" She still answered, hoping for the humoristic approach to work. She had no idea what the blonde remembered though, and that would make it hard to make any funny jokes. "Who else could sleep through the night with you snoring right next to?" She added, knowing that the mention of snoring would poke at Ino's image of herself.

"I do **not** snore, Haruno!" She replied in an half-amused, half-hurt tone. She then reached beside her to grab a pillow and slapped Sakura's face with it, leaving the girl to defend with both her arms in front of her face.

"Okay, okay! You do **not** snore! It was a joke Ino!" Sakura finally said, and the pillow attack stopped. A smirk crawled on her lips and she was about to formulate a nice comeback in the lines of 'But you smell' but Ino's bewildered look convinced her it wasn't a good idea.

"W-where are we?" The blonde asked, taking in her surroundings. At first Sakura frowned, not understanding the question, and then she remembered that Ino's room had undergone major changes. About five years ago… Well that was one heck of a jump. But then, Ino hadn't picked up the habit of calling her forehead but one or two years later. Sakura shook her head and decided that she wouldn't try to calculate Ino's memory's regression, and that instead she would deal with things as they came. It would probably be less stressing.

"This is your room, Einstein." She said, grinning. Hoping the smile would be contagious. Ino took another look around the room and quirked her eyebrows.

"I don't remember it being this big…"

Sakura rolled her eyes at Ino's antics and huffed, causing the blonde to frown even more, if that was possible. "C'mon, Ino-**_pig_**." She said slowly, emphasizing on the nickname and watching Ino's face intently for a reaction. But none came, so she continued with her reflection. "A girl like you deserves the biggest room there can exist!"

Ino's eyes narrowed, and for a moment she was observing her friend's trait. She blinked and incredulously ran her fingers through Sakura's _short_ pink hair, noting how different her friend looked, just as well. "Um, Sakura-chan?" She asked hesitantly, a feeling of utter stupidity crawling under her skin and making her blush ever so slightly. She couldn't imagine not remembering such a detail.

"What is it?" Sakura asked, starting to feel uncomfortable having the blonde straddle her hips. Not that she didn't enjoy it, but the fact that the girl above her was oblivious to that fact was kind of upsetting on it's own.

"When did you cut your hair?"

Sakura shot a perplexed glance at Ino, which turned sheepish as she reminded herself of her friend's current state once more. "You hadn't noticed yesterday?" She asked, feigning a slight pang of hurt, receiving a head shake as an answer. Well this sure wasn't working well.

"Have you even noticed that you're sitting on me?" Sakura finally asked after a moment of silence, causing the blonde to look down to see herself sitting on Sakura's hips. A deep blush crawled on her features as she practically jumped up, hesitating before offering her hand to help the pink haired girl up to. And as she brought the slightly smaller girl up is when she noticed how tall she herself was. She shook the feeling of a different height and body out, attributing it to her embarrassment and really weird awakening. All the while Sakura eyed her out weirdly.

"Are you okay, Ino?"

The blonde couldn't help but scoff at the question and crossed her arms in front of her chest before answering. "I'm fine!" She said confidently, assuming a defensive stance. Sakura let her concern show some more and reached out for the blonde's arms, but only to have her hand batted away the second it touched Ino's skin. "Keep your hands to yourself, forehead. What are you doing here anyway? I don't remember you sleeping over last night."

The question caught Sakura off guard, but as she was about to give up and simply explain the situation to Ino – something she was quite sure was not the last time she'd do - she figured a way to turn it into her favor, if only a little bit. "What else don't you remember Ino?"

Ino's pride kept her from flinching at Sakura's comeback. It was true that everything felt so different, so out of place. Nothing was as she remembered so far, not her best friend, not her room, not even her own body. And when Sakura kept her resolve and continued staring at her in concern, she finally gave in. "I feel like I woke up a couple years into the future, to be honest." She said, letting her arms fall to her sides, dropping her defenses. She thought Sakura would laugh at her for how silly this sounded, they both knew time travel was impossible – or that's what their teacher at the academy had taught them.

"You… kinda did." Sakura lamely offered, shooting a sympathetic smile to her friend. It only added to Ino's confusion. Why wasn't Sakura making fun of her? That was what she had been doing since they were awake, and even though she didn't remember her friend being so confident and playful, she liked that version of Sakura.

"I… don't understand…" Ino trailed off, hoping for an answer, something to clear this whole mess and confusion up. Sakura sighed softly and reached up to brush that obnoxious strand of hair out of the blonde's face tenderly.

"I'm fifteen, Ino. How old are you?"

Ino was about to answer her usual way, knowing she was slightly younger than the pink haired girl… But not to the extent she was faced with right now. "I can't be eleven can I?"

_'Eleven? That far back already? At this rate she won't remember a single thing in less than a week… I hope Inoichi and his team find the remedy before that happens…' _Sakura cringed at that thought, but even more at the expression that was now sitting on Ino's face. The girl was on the edge of tears, her lips trembled and her arms were wrapped around herself as she shivered slightly. Her eyes were wide open and glistening, the blue in them looking as if it would melt away any minute. "This is just a bad dream…" She muttered to herself, hoping that enunciating the words would make her wake up.

Sakura wrapped her arms around her friend and hugged her tightly, not knowing what to say to comfort her. She felt Ino return the embrace and sighed softly. That alone gave her the ounce of courage she needed to say this out loud.

"Ino, you were caught in a jutsu, on a mission, and came back to the village with part of your memory missing." Sakura felt Ino's frown at her words, and the strength of the hug diminished slightly. She gulped before continuing. "Every day you lose a little more of it."

Ino suddenly pushed herself away from Sakura and, even through her confusion, managed to look at Sakura defiantly. The pink haired girl gave her an apologetic smile. "Which is why you don't remember yesterday…"

Ino crossed her arms over her chest and took in a deep breath, her eyes cast on Sakura's so as to observe if the girl was lying to her or not. "What happened last night?" She asked almost fearfully. The question caught Sakura off guard again. She couldn't tell Ino about it, could she? But then, the blonde would know if she was lying.

"We… we went to dinner, and spent the night together… like friends, you know?"

"Friends don't end up sleeping all cuddled up together like that. Not without a very good reason." Ino deadpanned. She might not remember much of being a fifteen year old girl, but she knew that two people that age sleeping together was rather fishy. "And if you knew I wouldn't remember anything this morning…" she added, pausing to emphasize on her point. "You should've at least gone to sleep on the couch, no?"

Sakura's shoulders slumped. She was about to lose this battle, and she had no idea what the outcome of Ino winning would be. "You asked me… to stay with you…"

Ino's eyes grew wide. "I don't see any reason why I would've asked you to sleep with me! Grown up friends don't usually sleep together!" Sakura was at a loss. She had an eleven years old in front of her basically putting down what she couldn't explain to her. And her logic was not exactly flawed, either.

"You're right… People our age don't **usually** sleep together with someone of the same sex." She tried to buy herself some time with that answer, but it only seemed to pique Ino's curiosity some more.

"So, why would I have asked you to stay over and **sleep** in my bed with **me**?"

Sakura looked up to the ceiling, as if the white planks over her head could provide her with some kind of answer. She heard Ino tapping her foot anxiously and knew there was no way out of that one. She made a mental note to not sleep in Ino's bed again until this was sorted out. "We are not just _friends._"

Ino's eyes narrowed as she carefully examined Sakura's expression, looking for a hint of snicker, laughter, something that would tell her the pink haired girl was lying. Somehow she knew what that sentence meant, but she couldn't figure how her friend could be serious with such a… disgusting idea. She finally gave up, resolving herself to the truth.

"You are **sick**, Sakura." She said, grabbing a sweater from the top of a desk and storming out of her room. For a moment Sakura stared at the empty space where Ino had stood previously, completely dumbfounded by the girl's reaction. Then her brain kicked in and she ran after her, not wanting to leave her alone in the streets of Konoha.

"Ino wait!" Sakura's voice resonated, bounced back to her by a slamming door. Ino's mother was standing in the door frame by the kitchen, a perplex look on her face. She was absently wiping off a plate as well. "I'm sorry about that, Mrs. Yamanaka." Sakura said sheepishly, earning herself a sad nod. She nodded back and went after Ino, out of the house and into the streets, but the blonde had already vanished in the morning crowds. The pink haired girl stopped her course and looked around, her hand reaching to her forehead which she rubbed in frustration. There was no telling where the blonde had gone, but she needed to find her quick. As soon as possible.

"Ohey, Sakura!" A male voice that Sakura immediately attributed to Shikamaru resounded above the early morning street bustle. Sakura immediately turned toward where it came from, only to find herself bumping into a shady man hurrying down the street. After muttering a quick sorry, which probably never reached the caped form, she made her way to the young Nara and shot a questioning glance at him. Hands in his pocket, he sighed before answering.

"Tsunade wants to see you and Ino, right now. It's urgent, apparently." Sakura sighed too, looking up at the sky for a moment before she glanced back at Shikamaru.

"Have you seen her?" She asked quietly. Shikamaru simply raised an eyebrow.

"I think I freaked her out or something… She ran out of the house before I could… explain anything." The wording of what had just happened made Sakura's heart ache with this painful understanding that she might not be able to get close to Ino again before this thing was solved. Her friend had called her sick, and the echo of that word in her mind simply turned her stomach upside down, a familiar grief crawling up her throat. She wanted to cry.

"Oh." Was Shikamaru's one-worded answer. This was a little beyond his ability to deal with women, and then again Sakura's expression made him feel bad about not having anything else to say. He fidgeted nervously for a moment, then took a deep breathe and decided he could help. "I have an idea as to where she could've run off. Go see Tsunade, I'll find Ino."

Sakura quickly nodded and thanked Shikamaru wordlessly, glad that the lazy ninja understood what was going on. He gave her a reassuring smile and gestured for her to be on her way. Tsunade must've added it was an emergency. She smiled back awkwardly and leapt off in the direction of the Hokage tower, hoping she'd get good news, at least.

_vvvvvv_

Ino stopped by the training grounds, absently staring at all the tiny details. Her brain noted how different it was from what she remembered, but her heart didn't take note of anything. She was too busy thinking about what had just happened to settle for rational analysis of the situation.

_I can't believe her guts! It's one thing to have a secret crush on me, but sneaking in my bed to sleep with me is downright sick._ Ino kicked a twig from the ground and settled on sitting down against a nearby tree, letting herself slump down ungracefully, knowing nobody was watching her.

She then buried her head in her hands and let out a frustrated groan. _Why was it so comfy sleeping next to her? How could I even let her get this close to me without noticing? What the hell is wrong with me?_ Ino whipped her head up to look towards the sky, only to find out something dark was blocking her view. She narrowed her eyes, examining the dark cloth before her eyes traveled to the person's face. A brushed red goatee, a very small nose, tailored cheekbones framed by perfectly trimmed hair. And alert eyes, of a blue that was as cold as ice. An image ran through her mind, blurry and too quick to mean much. She had seen those eyes before, that much she was sure of. But she couldn't remember where. And didn't understand the feeling of dread that came with the vision in front of her. The stranger was smiling at her.

"Uh, can I help you?" She asked hesitantly, instinctively reaching for where she usually wore her shuriken pouch. Her eye slightly twitched when she realized she hadn't taken it with her, and it did not go unnoticed by the man who stood above her, a dangerous smirk crawling onto his lips. He shook his head like a man disappointed by the behavior of a kid, and crouched down to be at eye level with Ino.

"I'm not here to cause you any harm, as long as you cooperate." He said in a soft and warm tone, the voice contrasting with his shady appearance. Ino looked at him with a hint of fear in her eyes, But she was a trained ninja, if he tried something on her, she could react. There was no reason to panic… yet.

"I can give you your memory back, for a price." The man smiled a bit, crossing his hands in his lap as he raised an eyebrow, waiting for the blonde's response. Ino frowned slightly, something in her mind telling her that there was a catch. There was no harm in asking about the said 'price', however. She wasn't agreeing to anything.

"What's your price?" She asked, carefully examining the way his face moved as he answered, in search of a hint that the man was lying. However he kept the smile on his face and didn't show any sign of nervousness as he answered. The tone of his voice was colder, though. Fear-striking, even. Ino wasn't so willing to find out what it was about, after all.

"That pink haired friend of yours. Kill her."

Ino's eyes grew wide at the demand. Of course she was mad at Sakura for this morning, but there was no way in hell she'd accept such a request. Especially coming from a stranger, some weird man she didn't know – and didn't want to learn anything about. After the first expression of shock dissipated from her face she answered firmly. "You can't make me do it."

The answer made the man grin rather evilly, and the vision triggered yet another flashback in Ino's mind. One of being captured in a jutsu she couldn't make out, or understand. One that left her without pain, nor scratches. One that she had forgot about almost as soon as it had happened.

That man had caused it all.

So maybe Sakura and her, as much as she was reluctant to admit to herself, were really more than friends. And her earlier reaction had probably hurt the pink haired girl a lot. She couldn't reflect on it much longer though, since the edge of a shining hand claw was pressed against her throat, the man having removed his hand from under his large cape.

"If you don't do it, then **I'm** killing you."

Ino giggled despite herself. The situation was so typical. But unlike the stories she had heard of those heroes gladly giving their lives away to the bad guy to save a friend, she was going to fight for her own life. To the very end, which sadly seemed like it was closing in on her fairly quickly. The man gave her a strange look, and then understood that the answer was no and knew what he had to do. He moved, intent on simply piercing through the girl's throat, but somehow, his body didn't follow the lead of his brain, and he instead found himself getting back to a standing position, his expression one of utter confusion.

"Planning on doing something regrettable?" Came Shikamaru's voice as he walked out of the shadows, a smug look on his face. The man had no choice but to follow the lead in the opposite direction, leading him farther away from Ino, who's look of relief could probably be seen from the Hokage's tower.

The man glared at Shikamaru for a moment, apparently trying to break out of the shadow bind's grasp. But the young Nara held it out firmly, and eventually had his opponent resign and give in to his jutsu. "Good, now that we've got that sorted out, who are you, and what business do you have against Konoha?"

Despite the death grip the shadow binding technique had on him, the man managed to snarl at Shikamaru and turn his head away. Shikamaru was not impressed however, and simply smirked. "Fine, don't want to talk? That's even better for me, I don't get to ask all the troublesome questions."

Shikamaru suddenly yawned, and his slight loss of attention caused him to loosen his grip just enough for the man to get out of it. But before he could get anywhere, someone jumped on him from the top of the tree and landed in a cloud of dust. Ino squinted, trying to make out who it was that had come to her rescue once more – it wasn't Chouji's style to jump down from trees - as Shikamaru shook his head at his own mistake. When the dust settled down, one proud and grinning Hanmaru was literally standing on the back of the caped man, humming a tune that went something along the lines of 'Taking care of business'. He had his arms crossed over his chest and was looking at Ino, with what she thought could've been a charming smile.

"Heh, Han. As loud as usual aren't you?" Shikamaru said disinterestedly, his gaze on Ino. Hanmaru shrugged and stepped off the now unconscious man, only to bend over and pick him up by the hem of his cape.

"I'll bring 'da guy to the authorities. Ain't gonna cause you any harm anymore." Hanmaru said, at Ino's intention. The blonde girl examined him closely. Sure he felt familiar to her, but she couldn't quite place him, just like so many things since this morning.

Hanmaru frowned under the intense stare Ino was giving him, and he didn't notice Shikamaru getting closer to him until he was elbowed in the ribs by him. "She doesn't remember you, Han." He said simply, patting the man on the back. "Now just go and bring him to the ANBU quarters. I'll let Tsunade know we've captured him."

Hanmaru's face showed concern, but only for a few moments. Just long enough for Ino to notice and smile apologetically at him. Understanding now that it really wasn't just a practical joke being played on her. She didn't even know who Tsunade was – the name was familiar, probably something she had learned at the academy, but she had never _seen_ the woman.

"Alright Ino, Tsunade's waiting for you, c'mon follow me." Shrugging and frowning slightly, Ino followed Shikamaru half-heartedly. Was Sakura there? How could she face her friend after the way she had acted just a while earlier? She had little time to dwell however, because she had to give her all to follow Shikamaru. This much was not a good omen – for him to haste his movements, it had to be damn important.

_vvvvvv_

"What do you mean, she ran off?" Tsunade's voice thundered in the small office as Sakura was hesitantly explaining to her the reason why she was not with Ino right then. A young guy Sakura didn't know was sitting on a chair in a corner, looking bewildered by the sudden outburst of the Hokage. "Shikamaru's bringing her back!" Sakura defended herself, slowly backing away every step Tsunade made towards her.

"You are supposed to take care of her! Not freak her out first thing in the morning!" The blonde woman replied, in a slightly less aggressive tone, but still filled with anger and nervousness.

"I'm sorry! I had no idea she was going to run away! What was I supposed to tell her?"

"You weren't supposed to sleep with her!" Tsunade said in a cold, dead voice. Sakura knew that tone, it was the one Tsunade used whenever she referred to her and Ino's relationship. The Fifth Hokage still hadn't gotten used to that, and it was beginning to irritate Sakura.

"For your information, I did NOT sleep with her that way! I just held her through the night. Friends can do that too. I can't help it if she's more clever than the average person!"

"Who's clever?" Shikamaru's voice was heard in the direction of the office door which had just been opened by him. Ino was following suit, her eyes cast down and her shoulders slightly slumped. She was somewhat scared of what was coming next.

Sakura looked in their direction with relief passing through her eyes, but Ino's stance and expression immediately killed the feeling. Her mind put Tsunade and their current altercation far behind as she raced to her friend's side. Something held her back from hugging her however, and she settled for grabbing the blonde's shoulder and attempting to look straight into her eyes. "Ino, are you alright?" She asked, semi-panicked.

Ino blinked slowly and took a deep breath before looking up and meeting Sakura's gaze. She knew those eyes, and she was familiar with the way her body reacted to them. She had no more doubts. "I'm so sorry Sakura." She said softly, wrapping her arms around her friend's body and pulling her into a tight hug. Sakura returned it eagerly, she was so happy that her friend was here, safe and sound. "It's not your fault, Ino."

Sakura's words lifted a huge weight off of Ino's shoulders. She buried her head in Sakura's shoulder and clung to her as if her life depended on it. Sakura smiled softly and began stroking her back gently, content in the closeness. And they would've stayed that way if it hadn't been for a very loud throat clearing that come from only a few paces away from them.

"I'm sorry to interrupt such a touching reunion…" Tsunade said, looking sternly at Sakura, who reluctantly pulled away from Ino, but kept her arm around the girl's shoulder almost defiantly. The Hokage's eye twitched, but she continued. "… but we have matters to take care of. First off, what happened to Ino, Shikamaru?"

The tall man yawned and shook his head. Why was he the one who had to answer this question when Ino could probably relate the facts a lot better than he could? He shook his head slightly and cast a glance toward his teammate. "She was attacked by a suspicious man. He told her he'd give her back her memory if she killed Sakura. She refused. He tried to kill her. Me and Hanmaru prevented that from happening. Han's brought the guy to the interrogation quarters, I brought Ino here."

"He tried to kill you?" Sakura turned her head to Ino, shock apparent on her features. Both at being a target and at Ino being nearly killed. The blonde simply nodded, a hint of fear showing in her eyes. Sakura instinctively tightened her grip on the other girl's shoulders.

"I see." Was Tsunade's only reaction. She motioned for the boy sitting in the corner to get up and join them, which he did almost instantly. He was a bit smaller than Sakura, but built a lot tougher. His hair was down to his shoulders in long pale chestnut bangs that also covered part of his face. He looked like he was ready to go out on a mission, his shuriken pouch hanging on his left hip, and a seemingly long katana tied to his back by a steel chain. His clothing was mostly relaxed and dark – longs cargo-style shorts and a simple sleeveless shirt, but he wore a bright blue scarf around his neck, with the Konoha symbol forehead plate on it. His face was rather undefined, which showed how young he truly was. His eyes were of a piercing green, and they looked from Ino to Sakura curiously. As if he was trying to remember them.

"Sheidan, Sakura, Ino. " Tsunade started, pausing between each name as if it was important that they all remembered how each other was called. "You are off on a mission in the mist country. It should be simple enough, you'll be out gathering info." She paused for a moment, taking in the two girl's bewildered expression. But she picked up before Sakura could protest. "The duration of this mission is undetermined. Everything we need you to gather is in this envelope, as well as some more directions on how to accomplish the mission. I want you out of the village in an hour. Clear?" She handed the envelope to Sakura and gave her a look of _"You don't have a right to protest."_ And then dismissed the newly formed team, who left half-heartedly after agreeing to meeting at the front gate in an hour.

Only Shikamaru remained. "You think this is a good idea?" He asked the Hokage, who shot him a _"Since when do you care?" _glance, before answering. "This is all I could think of. The three of them are targets now. The farther away from Konoha they are, the safer."

Shikamaru seemed to think for a bit, and then he leveled his gaze with Tsunade's. "That's still two people without a memory you're sending out there."

Tsunade sighed and sat at her desk, grabbing an already half-empty bottle of sake and taking a gulp out of it. "I trust Sakura will handle them well. She doesn't have much of a choice, anyway."

* * *

**AN: **Wee, that took a while didn't it? Well yeah I got stuck around the second cut of this chapter (where Tsunade bursts out at Sakura). I realized that writing Ino as she loses her memory is more of a challenge than I thought it would. I just wasn't too sure how I was supposed to go at it here. I loved the beginning of the chapter though. The end isn't so bad. But I honestly think that the middle sucks. Meh, It's written, I can finally send them on the mission.

I've been having trouble doing one thing as of late. I keep shifting my interests from programming to reading to drawing, to playing Fire Emblem to writing music and other stuff. I can't seem to make my mind up. And I'm moving out in a month. Maybe a bit less. This is sooo stressing. I have to take care of too many things, I'm not good with organization... Blah. You prolly won't be seeing an update to this before I'm finally settled in. Unless I suddenly have an outburst of inspiration.

I'm glad people are still with me though . I'll finish this fic, I just can't tell how long it'll take me. Oh yeah, time for some shameless advertising: There are two wonderful InoSaku fics out there in the making, both written by **Flower Cynic** called **_Steps to Success_** and _**Too Much, Not Enough**. _Check them out if you got a chance!

Also, I have changed the poll in my profile page. If you care a lil about where this fic is headed, leave your opinion there! Thank you!


	4. Chapter 4: Everything Is Fine

**Chapter 4: Everything Is Fine**

"So that was our Fifth Hokage?" A curious Ino asked, ignoring the exasperated look on Sakura's face. The pinkette had to accompany the blonde to her own room to make sure she didn't forget anything, and all along the way Ino had been asking questions over questions about things she sometimes didn't even understand herself. She leant onto the wall next to her and shook her head.

"Yes. She's also teaching me the way of the medic nin. And her apprentice Shizune has shown you quite a few tricks, too. Your body probably remembers it more than your brain though. And no…" she paused, glaring at Ino's open mouth, as the blonde was about to form another question. "I don't know who that Sheidan kid is."

Ino nodded and began packing. She shoved her extra clothing into her backpack, making sure it was neatly placed so as to not take too much space, but so that it wouldn't wrinkle during transportation either. Sakura observed her attentively, feeling a wave of nostalgia at the memories that seeing her like this triggered. After a moment of piling things up in the bag, Ino raised her head and shot a questioning glance at Sakura. "What are you staring at, forehead?"

Sakura sighed and gave her friend a sad look, causing her to frown in concern. "Are you okay?" She asked, leaving her things on the bed and walking up to the pink haired girl. Sakura lowered her gaze and shrugged. Ino gently grabbed her arms on both sides and held on, waiting for her to look up. "I'm fine, Ino."

The blonde girl winced at the tone of Sakura's voice. It sounded like the girl was on the edge of tears, and this literally clawed at her heart. She watched her friend's face intently for a moment, before settling on kissing Sakura's forehead gently and giving her a smile when she looked up. "I'll get my memory back, Sakura. I promise."

Sakura couldn't help but smile back as she reached up with her right hand for Ino's face, trailing her fingertips along the girls jaw line slowly. Ino instinctively leaned into the touch, closing her eyes a bit. She was anticipating a kiss – it was the logic thing her girlfriend would do in such a situation. But their lips never met, and when Ino reopened her eyes, Sakura had gotten out of her grip and was already headed for the door, her back turned to her. "I'm going to get my things, meet you at the gates!"

Ino stood where she was for a moment, her arms now hanging loosely at her sides as she gaped at the retreating form of her friend. Had she done something wrong? Had she said the wrong thing? A sense of déjà vu spread into the back of her mind, but she shook it off. She was the one who had done that this morning. Calling her friend sick in the motion. _Smart move Yamanaka. Keep playing on her feelings that way… I just… need to make up for that, somehow… _The blonde sighed and resumed packing up her things, flopping down on her bed when she finished, intent on staring at the ceiling until it was time to go.

_vvvvvv_

Sakura was scratching her forearm relentlessly, every step she made causing her skin to go more irritated and turn to a darker shade of red. Every five steps she would take notice of what she was doing and stop herself, but two steps later her right hand's fingers were up to no good once more. Exasperated by herself, she finally decided to stop by a tree, drop her backpack to the ground and lean on the wooden trunk, angrily putting her hands behind her back when she was about to start again. _What in the world is making me so nervous? It's just a mission, and judging by Tsunade's expression, we're better off on that mission than staying here, in Konoha. And if that's the case, who the hell is that Sheidan kid? I've never seen him before. Argh, I wish Ike was here… _

"You called?" Iketetsomaru stood against the trunk, opposite to Sakura. He didn't turn his head toward the pink haired girl, since he knew she'd recognize his presence.

Sakura wasn't even surprised by his sudden apparition. "You can't help yourself with that mind reading, can you?"

The man winced and reached up to scratch the back of his neck sheepishly, the way he always did. Sakura heard the shuffling of his arm and smiled to herself.

"I just happened to be around." Ike lied, stopping his motion and leaning his head back against the trunk. "You need to relax, Sakura-chan." He then added, concern evident in his voice. The girl sighed and imitated him.

"This is just…"

"Overwhelming. I know."

"I don't think I can deal with Ino going through all these guilt trips, day after day, for the whole duration of this mission."

There was a short silence, and then Ike started laughing softly, his gloved hand reaching back for Sakura's and giving it a light squeeze before he let go. "You'll pull through."

The medic apprentice nodded softly and brought her arm up to her chest, holding it up protectively. The urge to scratch was gone. "Thank you, Ike."

"Anytime Haruno." He pushed himself off the trunk and looked back toward the pink haired girl, a half smile hanging about his lips. "You know where to find me." He added before leaping off, not even letting her thank him. Sakura shook her head and smiled. That type of behavior was typical for the young Ematai.

_vvvvvv_

"That kid's hyperactive much." Ino remarked as she watched Sheidan hop on one leg, than the other while they waited for Sakura to show up. Shikamaru who was beside her huffed.

"Don't forget he's only ten." Shikamaru answered, crossing his arms over his chest.

"So what's this, a babysitting mission?" Ino asked, slightly exasperated. Shikamaru was treating her like a kid too, and she didn't really appreciate it.

"It's all in the envelope Sakura holds. And you can't open it until you're out of the country." The Nara boy answered boringly. Ino had the urge to ask why their instructions were in an envelope. But then she knew better – if anyone was spying on their conversation, they would know where they were going. And she wasn't stupid either. For her to be sent out of the village in her current state, there had to be one heck of a threat for her _inside_ Konoha.

"I still don't understand why we're dragging this kid along." She still complained, causing her teammate to roll his eyes.

"He's lost his memory, just like you Ino." That answer caused Ino's facial expression to shift from annoyed to guilty. "And the person doing babysitting will most likely be Sakura, so I don't see why you're even complaining." That hit bulls eye, and Shikamaru knew it. He felt a little bad at having to be this cold towards Ino, but it had to be done, Otherwise Sakura would never hear the end of it. For today, anyway. He could only count on their lucky star for the days – weeks to come.

The group fell in a semi-comfortable silence as both Ino and Shikamaru got carried away by their thoughts, and Sheidan decided to stand still for a bit. They were also waiting for Sakura who was getting late. Being last minute was a habit of hers, but time had already gone past her usual lateness frame. Then someone came racing at them and for a moment they thought it would be Sakura finally getting there, only to be greeted by the sweaty and jumpy frame of Hanmaru.

"'S'any of ya'll seen 'dat caped man around?" The man let out in a breathe, his eyes darting from one side to the other as if he was followed, when in fact, he was the one trying to follow someone.

"Err, Han. Don't tell me you've lost him." Shikamaru asked darkly, frowning.

"Me? I didn't lose no one. The fella managed to break free and they sent me 'fter him."

"Han, you're just too loud to go on a chase…" Iketetsomaru's calm voice came from the other side of the gate, and a second later the Ematai was on the their side rolling his eyes. He grabbed his friend by the collar of his vest and dragged him off, smiling sheepishly at the trio that eyed him curiously. "Don't worry, we'll get him." He shot at Ino's intention.

Ino was caught up in staring at that man. He was yet another one of these faces she knew but couldn't place. And somehow his presence felt… threatening to her. Although why, she couldn't really tell. It was not the kind of physically threatening, either. If anything, she'd be thinking she was jealous as she watched him head off with the tall Hanmaru in tow. And then she had a flashback of Naruto and Sasuke and the dull feeling was replaced by a light laughter.

Just at that moment, Sakura came from the direction the two boys were heading to, casting them a curious glance, and then directing her gaze at the laughing Ino. The sight made her smile. After all, they were still friends, and they were just going on a simple mission. There was nothing to be worried about.

"So what's so funny?" Sakura asked, not even bothering to excuse her lateness. Shikamaru rolled his eyes before answering.

"Ino's just had the Sasu-Naru impression when seeing Hanmaru and Iketetsomaru hobble by."

"Ah, yeah I still get that myself from time to time." Sakura admitted, glancing around. "What were they up to this time?"

Shikamaru winced, but managed to keep his composure beyond that, offering a nervous smile to Sakura. "You three should be on your way." Sakura didn't protest, but eyed the shadow manipulator suspiciously, who in turn gave her an apologetic glance. He couldn't say anything, and although Sakura found it frustrating, she still nodded and let it go.

"Alright, Sheidan, Ino. Follow me!"

"Good luck." Shikamaru said. Ino and Sakura acknowledged with a thank you, Sheidan gave a nod, and in a matter of a second, the three nins were off into the forest.

_vvvvvv_

"So, Sheidan…" Sakura began as they were walking at a steady pace, looking for a place to take a small break and get organized. The kid shot Sakura a questioning glance and the pinkette hesitated before continuing. "What do you remember?"

The kid halted his course and this time gave Sakura a mean glare, freezing her in her tracks. Ino noticed they weren't moving anymore and stopped as well, watching the scene intently. After a moment of silence, Sheidan's eyes fell to the ground. "Nothing…"

Sakura's mouth hung open slightly at that revelation. Ino's eyes grew wide, and she started shaking despite herself. "Nothing, as in, you don't know who you are?" She asked, fearfully. Sheidan rubbed his face with his hand and sighed.

"I don't know. Things are familiar but not. I'm not even sure that name is really mine. And… I feel like this is my first day ever. I remember words, I know how to fight. Everything! But I don't know why, or how I came to know all these things!"

Ino shot a worried glance at Sakura, her shaking a little more intense. Sakura caught it and felt like a kunai had just been ran through her heart. She had the urge to leap onto Ino and hug her with all her might, but something held her back from doing so – probably consideration for the poor Sheidan. So instead, she kept quiet, occasionally glancing over to both of them, but mostly focusing into the deep nothingness right in front of her. Her mind was unfocused, and she didn't even notice the heavy silence until Ino broke it.

"Do you know how long… You've been under the jutsu's effect?" She asked fearfully. The kid shrugged. "I think we should focus on our mission." He stated, quite apparently uncomfortable with the discussion. Sakura reached out for the blonde's arm and gave it a light squeeze, and although she was unsatisfied, Ino nodded and turned back towards the trail, swallowing the lump in her throat.

**_He just ignored Ino's question. Kick the kid's ass!_**

_Oh shut up, I never asked you to come and help me now._

**_You're not denying you want to hit him!_**

_I'm not listening to you._

**_Ino feels bad for this morning. She thinks she's failed you as a friend because she didn't believe you._**

_I know that._

**_I thought you weren't listening?_**

_Whatever._

**_Aren't you going to show her you're not mad?_**

"Huh, Sakura? Are you alright? You've kinda just… spaced out on us." Ino asked, her brows furrowed in a worried frown. Sakura snapped out of her inner ramble and instinctively wrapped her arms around the blonde's waist, while still keeping up with the walking. Ino blinked once, then a second time, before returning the embrace hesitantly.

"Okay, I'll… take that for a yes?" Ino pushed on, attempting to smile at her friend. Sakura returned the smile eagerly.

"Yep. Fine, because I still got you despite everything." Ino's smile faltered at that statement. Sure she was here now. But what about tomorrow, and the day after? Would she even remain herself once all her memory of events was gone?

"I'm sorry for causing you so much worry…" She said sadly, earning herself a tighter squeeze.

"Don't say that. It's in no way your fault."

"Yeah it is!" Ino countered, her voice carrying anger towards herself. "If I wasn't such an idiot… I might not have been caught in that jutsu to begin with. And I would've trusted my best friend of ever."

Sakura sighed and shook her head, halting her steps and effectively stopping the girl she was holding as well. Their gazes met and the pink haired girl made sure she had her friend's full attention. "You remembered we were rivals. You couldn't have known. And yes, you're an idiot." She paused for emphasis. "Because you're thinking so low of yourself. Pull it together Yamanaka. If I hadn't been prepared for this, I wouldn't have come all this way with you two. I wouldn't have accepted to take care of you. "

"I thought the Hokage didn't give you a choice…" Ino defended herself, softly. Sakura shook her head and cupped the blonde's cheek tenderly.

"I love you too much to leave you, no matter if you love me back or not." Sakura retorted, a faint smile curling her lips. "I'll never let you go." She added, intently staring into the depth of Ino's eyes. After a second or two, the blonde practically crumpled into Sakura's arms.

"I love you too." She said between sobs, failing at controlling herself. Sakura fought with her own tears for a bit, gently stroking her friend's hair. "You don't have to say it…"

Ino sniffed and looked up, a pang of hurt visible on her features. "I mean it, Sakura."

"Oh please, get a room…" Sheidan interrupted, before Sakura could say anything back. Both girls shot a glance at the kid and reluctantly let go of each other. Ino dried her tears and Sakura adjusted her backpack nervously. Sheidan sighed and rolled his eyes. He then took upon himself to lead the team the rest of the way up to the frontier, picking up a faster pace then they'd been using earlier. He certainly didn't want to stop anywhere before they were out of the country. Not wanting to lose sight of him, both girls went after him quickly, not even looking at each other – they knew what was on their mind without asking, anyway.

_vvvvvv_

"Ah, Haruno-san!" A controlled female voice called at the pink haired girl from somewhere behind a tree. They were pretty close to the border and Sakura was positive that no one working there would know her name. She stopped in her tracks and waited for the other two members of her team to join her on top of a tree before she answered.

"Who are you?" Sakura asked the voice, trying to pin down the number and faces of people who would call her by her last name. Ino had caution written all over her face, as well as a bit of a worried tilt to her lips. Sheidan was already off into another tree, ready to strike whatever, or whoever it was if it threatened them the least little bit – he blamed that on ninja reflexes, because he'd thought only after being positioned.

The girl hopped on the tree opposite theirs near the trail and smiled sweetly as she noticed the rest of the team. "Yamanaka-san, Hitsugaya-chan!" She added in a cheery voice, despite it being kept low so that it wouldn't alert anyone's suspicions. Sakura let out a breath she didn't know she was holding when she recognized Dasane Yuhika, Hanmaru's little sister. The strawberry blonde was wearing an ANBU suit, complete with pads, vest, gloves. Everything in her screamed _'Special Forces. You never saw me' _But the absence of her mask, which she was holding in her left hand.

Ino blinked. Yet another face that reminded her of so many things, but nothing concrete. This was getting old. Sheidan on his side blushed at the mention of his name – and the addition of _chan_ to it. Sakura raised an eyebrow before leaping off to join Yuhika on her branch.

"Didn't know you joined the ANBU…" She muttered when she saw the scroll in the girl's hands.

"Least I can do to repay the village, Haruno-san." Yuhika answered politely, ignoring the tone in Sakura's voice. The pink haired girl cringed. "No need for formalities between us anymore Yuhika. You don't have to make up for your bro's lack of."

The girl giggled and motioned for the other two nins to join her, which they did in silence. "I was assigned to your team for the duration of this mission." She simply stated, letting go of the bottom part of the scroll she was holding, showing the clear orders that were, without a doubt, issued by Tsunade.

"That dates from yesterday." Sakura noted, somewhat suspicious. The Dasane woman scratched underneath her chin nervously before answering. "No offense, but everyone knew you'd be leaving today, save for you two."

An annoyed scowl formed on Sakura's face as she crossed her arms over her chest. She cast a glance at Sheidan and her eye twitched. "We weren't even told he's from the Hitsugaya clan…" Ino frowned at Sakura's sudden seriousness and instantly reached out for the girls arms, only to have it patted away.

"It's all in the envelope, actually." Yuhika defended herself, her smile faltering at the coldness Sakura was directing towards her. She could understand how the pink haired girl was suspicious of her. "I'm sorry for not finding you guys sooner." She added, hoping to lift a bit of the tension that had fallen over them. But the silence remained intact as Sakura reached for the envelope in her backpack and opened it slowly.

After a thorough reading, and a second, and even a third, skipping over words this time, Sakura finally looked up to Yuhika, now wishing she hadn't squatted Ino's hand away. She glared, stared, scowled, and then laughed almost hysterically.

"This… is bullshit!"

Yuhika gulped and shot a glance to both Sheidan and Ino before she answered to Sakura. The pink haired girl was so lost in her inner ranting at these orders she didn't notice the motion. The two gave her shrugs and confused looks, definitely wanting to know what was going on now. "I'm sorry, Haruno-san…"

"I think I need to sit down… now." Sakura said, suddenly turning really serious. She plopped down ungracefully on the nearest unoccupied branch that could support her weight and sat against the trunk. Ino followed, unsure what she was supposed to say or do. She finally settled with sitting on a branch close by, just a little lower than Sakura's. Her position allowed her to put a gentle kiss on her friend's cheek, who closed her eyes thankfully at the gesture.

Sheidan shifted uncomfortably nearby, making the tree crack slightly under his travelling weight. "What's the matter?" He finally asked, curious about what would come next. Sakura's eyes popped open, as if she'd just waken up from a nightmare.

She stated her answer absentedly, still in disbelief. "We've been assigned to work in a day care center until things settle down in Konoha."

Ino's eyes went wide as she stared at Sakura, the same disbelief written over her own face.

"You've got to be kidding me…"

* * *

**AN:** Oi. I did not expect to get an update ready before I moved, seriously. I can't say I'm all too happy with this one, either. It looks a bit more like my usual writing style than the previous 3 chapters, for some reason. But I'm still not... satisfied with the way I'm carrying out this story. But, I read so much these past two days and it's given me an urge to write. Ah well... I don't think it's all that bad, anyway. Kinda short compared to what I'm used to write, but this is a filler/turning point chapter, so I wasn't expecting much out of it either. I guess I may jsut be too hard on myself.

Oh yea, err, rating change. I'm not going to go in anything Mature. I just know it now. I removed the only tiny part that wasn't all that appropriate (nobody would really realize it, I believe). So... I'd like to thank every single one of my readers that have been with me from the beginning Your reviews mean a lot to me, too! And I'd like to give special thanks to Alchemist PAC who's answered my profile poll about this story in a very thorough explanation of what he/she (It's not stated anywhere!) thought I could be doing with this story. All the rambling helped me figure out a couple things I needed to fix (and which i believe I did either in my head, but mostly in this chapter) about this fic, and hopefully it gets better from here on.

Ah yeah. I wanted to put a Saku/Ino kiss so bad... I think I'm a sucker for fluff today. But meh, it didn't fit. So... I'll fix one later on, I guess.


	5. Chapter 5: Flurry

**Chapter 5: Flurry**

"Nani?" Sheidan nearly shouted, not quite happy with what he was hearing. He knew that if they were going to a day care, he would have to play the innocent kid, and despite his loss of memory, the idea didn't exactly appeal to him.

Sakura pinched the bridge of her nose and then recited the content of the envelope to her two teammates, while Yuhika struggled to not burst out laughing in front of them.

"_Your mission consists in befriending the manager of the daycare center in Kakariko village (1), and gain information on a case of disappearing children. Ultimately, you should find the missing children and arrest whoever is involved in their kidnapping if such is the case._

_A message has already been sent in which Zelda applies to a job offer for the daycare, explaining that she also needs help to take care of her amnesic brother Link. After a day or two, a friend of the family is to come and join them – deal with that whichever fits your situation best. Use transformation jutsu if you have to. I'm sure Ino will do her work well. _

_Leave any fighting to Yuhika. She'll be around in case something unexpected comes up. Try not to involve Sheidan or Ino into too many things, remember they can't remember anything overnight. I trust you'll find a way to prevent them from freaking out every morning._

_Good luck with the kids._

_Tsunade"_

Ino gave Sakura an apologetic smile and put her hand over hers in an attempt to comfort her friend. She was in no position to complain. If anything she'd be filling holes. Surely she was not going to take care of toddlers all day long. It was well enough to take care of herself. "Hey, I'm sure you'll do fine. You got a thing with children."

Sakura turned her head towards Ino and narrowed her eyes. "Yes, I believe they call that _hatred_." She deadpanned, before leaning her head back against the trunk and closing her eyes.

"Well… I don't hate you…" Sheidan attempted, unsure of the medic's reaction.

"You are not a six months old baby, though."

"It's going to be fine." Yuhika pressed on, a cheery smile gracing her features. Sakura shot a glance in her direction and sighed.

"I guess we don't have much of a choice, anyway. How far are we from that village Yuhi?"

Yuhika scratched below her chin for a minute and then shrugged, ignoring Sakura's facial expression that read annoyance and on top of it, tiredness. "I'd say another day from here. We'd better cross the border and set-up camp soon. I'm afraid it's going to rain in less than two hours."

The other three nins instinctively looked up to the sky to realize that the clouds were indeed threatening to release their reserves of water on them. How they hadn't paid attention to the weather before, the reason eluded all three of them. But now that they'd seen it, it felt like the mood had totally crumpled, and so did their energy.

"Woah hey! Guys, what's with the long faces?" Yuhika asked, as she hung her mask to a hook on the side of her bag. Sakura simply shook her head and hopped in front of all of them. Ino frowned but said nothing, following Sakura – she'd trust her with her own life. Sheidan shrugged and went after them, leaving the poor Yuhika behind. "Well I guess she still hasn't gotten over that mission then."

--

Setting up camp had been a formality. The quatuor of ninjas had managed to find a big enough cave to fit everyone and had had the time to gather wood and water for the night, as well as a tasty animal that served as their meal. All of this before the first drop of rain fell on them. Short of the oppressive silence, everything was fine.

Sakura and Ino both sat near the entrance to the cavern, watching the raindrops falling to a regular rhythm and listening to the noises of nature. It had been a while since Sakura had slept in the wild. Since she didn't have a team anymore she'd spend a lot more time studying and helping at the medical facility than on the field. It was somewhat nice to meet be in the wild again.

"I'll stay awake tonight." Everyone's head turned towards Ino, who'd uttered the words quietly, not expecting the rock walls to bounce the echo back to them so loud. Sakura put her hand in the blonde's back and looked at her with a fully understanding expression, yet shaking her head in disagreement. "I don't want to forget anything anymore!" She whined angrily, pushing Sakura away as she used her as leverage to propel herself on her feet, and out in the rain.

Sakura remained where she was for a moment, her head in the dirt and her legs up over the log they'd been sitting on. Watching as the silhouette of her friend made its way out in the night. She felt the stares from both Yuhika and Sheidan pierce right through her as if they were accusing her of what was going on - she couldn't stay there and so she shot up to her feet and darted in the direction she'd seen Ino take.

She found her leaning against the rocky wall outside of the cave, undoubtedly crying even though it would've been hard to tell seeing how drenched she was. How soaked they both were. Sakura walked up to her and, without a word, pulled the blonde into a hug. The material of their clothes clung to them, and when they pulled away from each other Ino's hair remained glued to the side of Sakura's face. Despite the situation, they both giggled.

Then Ino reached up and brushed her hair off of Sakura's cheek, letting her fingers linger there, and slowly leaning in. Sakura was staring at her, lost in her eyes. Her whole body shining through the rain within a ghostly halo. It all felt so unreal, and at the same time, she knew that, even though her memory was missing, nothing was more real to her than that bond she shared with her best friend. She laid her lips on the pinkette's and remained there, waiting for approval.

Torn between her sanity and the current moment, Sakura never gave any signs of either rejecting or accepting the kiss. She couldn't lie though, her body was well reacting to the closeness and her breathing was etched in between rapid intakes of air that she couldn't assimilate fully. It was like her first time all over again, except that it wasn't.

"I'm sorry, I shouldn't have done that..." Ino apologized as she pulled away and swallowed the lump that had formed in her throat while she waited for Sakura to answer her actions. She hesitated, her hand still cupping Sakura's cheek, her eyes still gazing into the emerald ponds that seemed so troubled. She was so focused on them she didn't realize Sakura had closed in the distance between them again. That until she was kissing her with all her being, causing Ino's back to rake against the stone behind her a little as their bodies melted into one another. Forget sanity, love was all that mattered to her right then.

"I'm crazy in love with you Ino." Sakura admitted when they broke apart, foreheads still close, water dripping from their hair down to the tip of their noses, a few strand tears mixed in with the raindrops rolling down their cheeks. "Whether you remember me or not, this much won't change." She added, putting a short, chaste kiss on the blonde's lips for emphasis. Ino sobbed once. Just one single time. She was not going to break down. She couldn't allow herself to.

"I see this is hurting you. I can only imagine how painful it can be for you to wake up close by every morning and have to reaqquaint me with the reality every single time. Forget that I nearly got killed because of it today, Sakura! I'm going to drive you insane. There has to be something I can do to make it less worse?!"

Sakura laughed despite herself, her eyes clear and her expression calm. The doubt that had been there a minute ago was gone. "Not sleeping is not going to make the situation '_less worse'_ Ino." She poked at her friend's grammatical mistake and smiled. Her hand found Ino's and she entwined their fingers. "We're on a mission. You need to be rested. I need you to be rested, wether you remember me or not."

Ino nodded and felt her eyes water up once more. She couldn't quite believe this was happening. She was supposed to be the strong one. Yet here she was, merely a shadow of herself, walking in the steps of that shy girl she'd gotten to know... how long ago was it? "But what happens if I don't remember you at all in the morning?"

Sakura sighed and checked the sky from the corner of her eyes, flinching when a rain drop fell straight into her left eye. They both giggled and Sakura shook her head after clearing her vision. "Then I'll just make you fall in love with me again." She sounded confident, or tried to. Ino wouldn't remember this in the morning anyway. And she'd sleep better if she wasn't too troubled.

"Isn't there anything I can... do for you?" Ino asked, hopeful. Sakura smiled some more at her.

"Yes, go sleep. We have an early start tomorrow." She said in something resembling a motherly tone, to which Ino nodded, ready to push herself off the wall and back into their cavern, when Sakura's arm blocked her path. "And please, kiss me one more time."

--

"Welcome to our homely lovely daycare center, what can I do for you?" A slightly overweight man with a very visible wig on his head and eyes that looked like tiny slices said to Sakura and Sheidan, as he bowed politely. Sakura resisted the urge to roll her eyes and instead smiled sheepishly at the man with what she felt like was her dumbest smile ever.

"I came from the far land of Kokiri-kura because I heard there were medics in this country that could treat the disease that hit my son not so long ago." She answered in a fake voice. Conscious that Ino and Yukiha were watching her intently and that the blonde was probably giggling, despite the fact that she had no idea what they were there for. She was glad she hadn't been the one to explain to the girl they were playing a prank on the man. Sheidan had been kind of easy to deal with. He remembered nothing, and although he had trouble trusting anyone, Sakura had taken a picture of them the day before and could show it to him to easily prove that the team members were trustworthy.

The man gave her an interested glance, maybe too interested even, causing Sakura to start feeling a little uncomfortable with this. "You see, he loses his memory every day."

The man eyed her curiously again, then giving her a warm, but _fake_ - she noted it - smile. "You've come to the right town, however there is nothing our daycare can do for you."

Sakura nodded and smiled to the man - another fake smile. Geez, how much more of that role playing would have to be done to get this sorted? "Well, I heard you were hiring. See I don't have the money for the treatments yet. And I'm pretty good with kids. So I thought that, while I'm here, I could take care of..." She hesitated, not quite remembering which name she was supposed to use for Sheidan. She decided to pat the kid's head and ruffle his hair up to cover up her stress, casting a subtle glance towards where Yukiha was hiding. The girl rolled her eyes at her before drawing the kanji's to Sheidan's fake name in the air. "... Link! Yeah, take care of Link and at the same time earn some money to maybe one day restore his memory. You know?"

The man nodded knowingly - was that a good thing? - and motioned for her to get inside the place. She hesitantly took a step forward, dragging on the hand of the kid accompanying her. Her eyes immediately fell on a gigantic mess the size of a mountain, piled up around a bundle of hyperactive kids on one side pulling each other's hair, on the other fighting for one of those popular toys, in the corner some cowering in fear at the other's wild displays. She did her best to prevent her shoulders from slumping, instead blinking nervously. "Minimum wage, you start now." The man smiled at her and extended his hand forward.

Sakura had to resist glaring at the man. This job was worth at least double the minimum wage, seeing as she would be working like two people non-stop. Until Ino came in the picture, anyway. But a mission was a mission, and she did hope Tsunade had something in mind to compensate for this. She reluctantly grabbed the man's hand and gave it a good shake, nodding sadly. "Alright. Where do I start?"

--

The last kid, save for Sheidan, had finally gone home. Although fairly reluctantly. Sakura didn't really care though, he was one of those kids that never listened to anything you said and his parents looked like they wouldn't give a damn if he even died. All in all it was just another good riddance... One in a million to come. And she wondered how she could last trough this whole mission. Taking care of kids was even harder than taking care of patients. And not really as rewarding. But at least, she had a lot less chances to cause a death. Did she?

"That was a nice first day, Zelda-san." The man that had hired Sakura said from behind her, causing her to jump in surprise.

"Oh, huh, yes, I guess, I mean, thank you, Mitsui-san." Sakura frowned. The man wasn't intimidating at all, was he? So why was she stumbling on her words so much? Why did the atmosphere, in this right moment, feel threatening? Was it the fact that maybe he knew about the child disappearing? Or just because she couldn't see herself working even another day like this?

Thinking made her realize that she didn't have to drag it out at all. She just had to use her charms, maybe an illusion or two, and figure the whole thing out presto. And then she could just go back to Konoha, get Ino fixed, and be over with this whole... Thing.

"Say, Mitsui-san..." She drawled, walking in closer to him half-heartedly. The man raised an eyebrow at her but didn't show any kind of heightened interest, as if he was totally unaffected by Sakura's charms. _Damn, I've been lesbian for too long..._ "These kids that disappear, or the rumor that crawls..." She took in another step, putting her hand on the man's chest. She was disgusted at her own actions, and Mitsui's lack of response to them made it all worse. She still miraculously kept her composure - and act - up."Is that true? I'm afraid for my precious Link. What would happen, with his loss of memory, if he was to be kidnapped?"

The man cleared his throat and pushed Sakura away gently, his facial expression a mix of apprehension and something akin to understanding. "Your concerns are misplaced, lady." He started in a pinched tone. Sakura narrowed her eyes the slightest, waiting for him to continue. Had she struck a sensible cord? "The disappearances have nothing to do with this daycare, for one thing. But, the treatment for those loss of memory is apparently quite risky, if you catch the drift. Secondly, I am neither interested in women, nor sexual activity with my employees..."

As he was finishing, Mitsui's face shown a slight blush and all traces of stress due to lying were gone. Sakura blinked once, then again, a piece of dust lodging itself in her eye in the process, making her squint and cover her eye in surprise on the third blink. "I see..." she muttered, before calling for Sheidan a tad insistently. "Thank you for the information, Mitsui-san." She added after rubbing her eye as the kid made his way to her. The owner of the daycare merely smiled and waved at them before returning to his duty.

--------------

"Epic fail!" Yuhika's voice came from inside a bush that Sakura walked by, which earned itself a kick from a partially angry Sakura, but not before the other female disappeared from it.

"Shut up." The pink haired girl answered, crossing her arms. Yuhika came out of her hiding spot shaking her head.

"I knew that guy was gay before he even hired you." Smug look, arms crossed mirroring Sakura, and a nonchalant stance accompanied the mocking statement that Hanmaru's sister had made, and Sakura temporarily narrowed her eyes before remembering how polite and nice that girl could be. She was just playing, no harm done, no need to get all upset. It was just one of the traits she sometimes borrowed from her obnoxious, loud, (so Naruto-like) idiot of a sweetheart brother he was.

"Did you know Han and Ike are together?" Sakura asked, a glint of playfulness in her eyes. She waited for the fake information to sink in, and knew she had succeeded when confusion drew itself on the other girl's features.

"You're kidding." Yuhika said, hoping this was a joke. If it was true, she'd be the most idiotic of the little sisters to not notice sooner. Sakura decided she wasn't going to play for too long and dropped it in an eye roll, before they both started laughing. Sheidan looked at them as if they were coming from another planet.

"Hey!" Ino bounced next to Sakura and looked at her friend, a little anxious. Sakura returned the salutation and observed the blonde for a moment, finding this behavior a little weird for her life-long friend. Ino poked at the ground with the tip of her shoe like a shy four year old would do before looking back up. "So you're my best friend, Sakura?"

A body froze in the late afternoon, limbs becoming rigid when the muscles actually felt limp. A heartbeat raced and slowed down at the same time as the unsteady breathing quickened, and two green, wide eyes stared in disbelief at the blonde girl who could only smile sheepishly, averting her eyes the best she could.

"Ino... you really... don't remember me?" It felt like her lips hadn't moved, but Sakura had indeed asked this question, feeling the pain of her chest contracting at the idea. Ino nodded apprehensively, while Yuhika stepped next to Sakura and gave her an apologetic smile.

"I told her what she needed to know when she woke up this morning..."

"And you think that makes it alright or something?" Sakura burst out, immediately regretting it. Yuhika knew that it wouldn't. She was just trying to help, right? "I'm sorry." She added swiftly, staring down and sighing softly. Kids, memories, more kids, troubles... Ino not remembering her at all. When was this all going to end?

"Oh, don't worry about it, Haruno-san. I totally understand. I'd like to let you dwell on the recent events, but I need to hear about today before sunset."

Sakura's eyebrow lifted at the mention of Yuhika being in a hurry. Why? "I learned pretty much nothing." She stated, crossing her arms and eyeing the red-haired girl curiously. "He's gay, and says the memory loss treatment is what is causing the disappearances."

It was Yuhika's turn to frown questionningly. "What do you mean, 'pretty much nothing'! That's a load of important information!"

"If you don't know Tsunade, I guess it is..." Sakura shook her head and walked over to Ino as she spoke, her palms eventually coming to a rest on the blonde's shoulders. "She sent us here because it is the core of the problem. She figured we'd be safer hidden in plain sight." She paused, letting the words sink in and somewhat enjoying her intelligence right then. "She thought we wouldn't figure it out, but I saw Shikaku and Inochi back in the village yesterday. And then the pieces of the puzzle fell together when I realized you were the fourth member of the team."

Everyone was now looking at Sakura like she came from outer space or something. If she had known all along, she sure hadn't shown it once that day. "You're the best at Genjutsu, quite a couple notches over me, dare I admit." Sakura said almost defiantly. "Ino's got her mind transfer technique, and Sheidan of the Hitsugaya clan probably still remembers how to use the lullaby jutsu, whether he likes it or not." Once again she paused, observing her teammates faces gradually falling. "We're here to infiltrate the base, and figure things out. **Maybe** find a way to cure Ino and Sheidan. And when we've figured out enough, I'm pretty sure Han and Ike are going to blast in and destroy everything."

The look on Yuhika's face gave it all away, and Sakura smiled proudly, until one little thing nagged at her head and made her grunt softly. "I simply didn't expect to have to do **_babysitting_** all day."

Ino giggled and smiled at the pink haired girl standing in front of her. "You're doing a good job at it, though. Am I right Sheilan?" The boy's head shot towards the two girls with a slightly annoyed look in his eyes.

"I was told my name is Shei**dan**, not **lan!** But yea, Sakura-chan, you're doing a good job."

Yuhika sighed loud enough to get their attention back. "And how are we going to find out where that base is? Because obviously that man will not be seduced by any of us, and Sheidan is way too young for that."

A smirk slowly appeared on Sakura's face as she turned towards Yuhika, ready to answer. "They call this approach _Sexy no Jutsu_."

* * *

Foot Note! (1) Yes, I know. Legend of Zelda reference. I couldn't help it, I was listening to remixed music from the games when I wrote this.

_A/n Argh! Yes I know. This is short! And Kinda crappy too. And it took me forever. ::Not even trying to evade the tomatoes::  
But hey, here ya are! With a whole new chapter of this not-so-wonderful story. Sequels are almost always a bad idead xD. Meh, It happens I guess. I got stuck, and started loosing this inspiration, y'know. I wrote a bunch of stuff in-between. Or well, a couple things, anyway. With my girlfriend here, I dont get to write all that much. Have I ever mentionned how sweet she is? Please don't hate her! I'm the one who never really wants to close up and write when she's around._

_Anyway, hope you enjoyed! I'll try to take a lil less time for the next chapter. Thanks for sticking with me, btw :)_


	6. Chapter 6: I'm Too Sexy

**Chapter 6: I'm Too Sexy**

Ino blinked as she repeated word after the other what Sakura had just said. "You want me, me?" She said, pointing at herself. "… To transform into a guy and seduce that other guy?" Somehow the information didn't seem to register, and Sakura sighed in defeat. "I can't transform into a guy, pink hair just doesn't do well, and I'd probably end up making myself look like Sasuke. And Sasuke is not the kind of seductive guy. Just… henge into your father, can you do that Ino?

The blonde seemed to think for a moment, frowning slightly, apparently working really hard to remember. "Uh… Henge?"

Sakura slapped her forehead with an open palm, letting out a defeated sigh. Beside her Yuhika was giggling, and Sheidan raising an eyebrow. "Alright, Yuhi. Since you find that funny, why don't **you** do the jutsu?"

Yuhika suddenly became quiet and looked at Sakura with a very grave expression. "I can't get involved. I'm here for the fighting only, remember? You'll thank me when I save your sorry butts later."

Sakura rolled her eyes and sighed again, turning her attention back to Ino. "Hey piggy, you were the best in our class back in the days. I'm pretty sure your body remembers, so, do as I do, 'kay?" Ino nodded, and Sakura proceeded to make the hand signs required for the Henge no Jutsu very slowly, even though they were so imprinted in her mind it was hard to slow it down. And just as expected, Ino completed the rest on her own, at regular speed. The end result was a little disappointing however.

Sheidan was doing his best to not burst out in laughter, and Yuhika was already rolling on the ground giggling like crazy. Sakura's jaw was twitching, both at the discouragement she felt at seeing this _thing_ and the desire to just let it out and laugh out loud. Ino was simply staring at them through her open frog eye.

"Re…. Release it, Ino. Please!" Sakura tried to hold it in, but it was getting really hard. The innocent and confused look on the blonde's face didn't make it easier.

"What did I do wrong?" The blonde asked, struggling to compose the release sign Sakura was miming to her with her palmed hands. Boy was she glad when she could get rid of the puffy bunny tail and the rainbow belly.

"What the hell were you **thinking** about, Ino?" Sakura asked, finally releasing a chuckle as a tear formed at the corner of her eyes from all the bottled up laughter.

"I… I don't know." Ino answered honestly, a slight blush creeping up her cheeks. At that right moment Sakura wanted to melt. Sheidan had lost his memory, yet he was still acting his age, if not a bit older. Ino was plainly returning to childhood, and it was cute. Sad, heart wrenching, agonizing for her. But cute.

"Alright, do it again, but this time, think about your dad. Okay?"

Ino nodded and started the hand signs again, the memory of her body repeating the hard learned movements for her, and this time the results were a lot more satisfying. So much that Yuhika almost swooned. "God Ino, is your father really that handsome?" The red haired girl asked as she observed the short blonde hair, the very faint goatee, and the perfect build in front of her. The only thing Ino missed was the height, but that could be dealt without.

Sakura frowned a bit. She couldn't remember Inoichi ever having that hairdo, but then again she hadn't known Ino for the entirety of her life. Her own father had changed as she grew up as well. "That's perfect, Ino. You can keep it up for a while, right?"

Ino smiled and nodded, in a rather childish way. She was proud of herself. "I can keep this up all night. What do we do next?"

"First, erase that smile off your face. You have to look older."

"You mean sad, like you?" Ino asked nonchalantly, causing Sakura to frown, taken aback by the sincerity behind it all. Wasn't it true that growing up brought much trouble and a lot less blissfulness? Ino was lucky in her bad luck.

Sakura nodded, smiling sheepishly. "Something like that. Just don't giggle, that's not really manly."

"Gotcha!" Ino piped up, before putting on a serious, yet intense expression. It led Sakura to do a double take. Ino wasn't just pretty and cute, she had a charm inside her that radiated somehow more in this form than her usual, female self. This depth intrigued her some, but she had no time to dwell on it, since Mitsui was already walking by them.

"Here's the plan. Ino, you follow this man from a distance, we need to know where he's going. Once he stops, you approach him and…" Sakura paused and thought for a moment. How was she supposed to explain to her friend how to seduce a man?

"… talk to him as if you wanted to play with him." Sheidan interrupted with impatience. Yuhika shot a side glance at him suspiciously, but it went unnoticed.

"Yea, do that." Sakura agreed, too much in a hurry to pay attention to who had just spoken. "I'll be just behind, dragging Sheidan around. Then I'll walk up to you and you have to pretend you haven't seen me for a long time. Yuhika will… lurk."

Ino nodded her understanding, all the while her serious expression not faltering one bit, her focus unwavering. _No wonder she was so good in school. _Sakura thought as she hushered Ino after the daycare owner, following close behind. Yuhika simply shook her head and leaped off into the shadows, not entirely agreeing with Sakura's plan, but following it anyway.

Almost immediately, three masked nin took hold of Ino and Sheidan, who offered little resistance, and of Sakura, who, caught by surprise, didn't put up much of a fight either. Seeing that, Yuhika prepared for an assault and was able to ward off the fourth ninja, but not quickly enough to be able to hurry at the rescue, let alone to have a good idea of where they'd taken the knocked out kids. She sighed and shook her head – she knew all along something like this would happen, yet couldn't prevent it from happening. Sakura would be even more mad at her, now.

_"You could've shown up earlier!"__ A badly beaten Sakura let out, looking at the intact ANBU member defiantly. Yuhika had no actual good reason to be late._

_"I thought you could handle them fine…" the red haired ninja had answered sheepishly._

_"You almost got me killed." The medic ninja had deadpanned as she was taking care of her wounds herself. Yuhika was useless in that situation._

"Guess I don't have much choice…" A few hand signs later there was a whole shadow clones squad trying to track down the rest of her squad.

--

Sakura felt a jerk and her head instantly throbbed with pain as she opened her eyes to witness something she would've never expected to see. Ino, back to her female self, held a kunai and was ready to strike down at her throat, probably too fast for her to react at all, especially considering she was pinned to the ground. Her brain could barely register what was going on as the time seemed to slow down, maybe just enough for her to get out of the situation, yet her body wouldn't move faster than it should. No film of her life flashed through her mind – only an acceptance of the truth to come. _I'm going to die._

Sheidan rolled up and propelled himself onto Ino, deviating the blow in the process, enough that instead of slicing her throat, the kunai embedded itself right atop of her shoulder. Sakura blinked, and her survival instinct kicked in, causing her to push Ino off of her with all her strength, The blonde flew back into a concrete wall, hitting her head hard, thus bringing her to the edge of consciousness. Realizing what she'd just done, Sakura jumped up to her feet and raced to her friend's side, meeting in her eyes an apologetic gaze. "I'm sorry, forehead… "

"Fo… Did you just call me forehead?" Sakura hadn't heard the insult in quite a while. At least not since Ino had started loosing chunks of her memory. Had she gotten it back?

At that thought, she started questioning where they were. A look around confirmed they were in some sort of cell, but something in the décor was off… _Sheidan…_

The kid had picked up the kunai and stood behind the kneeling down Sakura, the blade pressed against the back of her neck. "I guess the game's over." He said in a tone a little too mature to belong to someone his age. Sakura tensed up.

"So I really was the one you wanted all along…" She said matter-of-factly. She could see Sheidan smirk from the corner of her eye and tried really hard to understand why he hadn't acted sooner. If he was the one controlling Ino, then why hadn't he done anything before?

Ino laid against the wall and watched the scene helplessly. She felt drained. The past few days were but a blur in her mind, and all she could seem to remember was Sakura crying. However, when the small Sheidan turned into that red haired goateed man from a few days back something clicked in her head. She tried to remember the first time she'd seen him, and parts of her latest mission flashed to mind.

Sakura noticed the change of expression on her friend's face at the view of the man. "That explains how you got away, at the very least." The pink haired girl stated, shifting the slightest bit her position to get a better leverage, and at the same time to test the readiness of her opponent. The man was faster and stronger than her, no doubt. "Why didn't you let her kill me?" She then asked when the tip of the kunai pierced her skin under the pressure.

"I need your skills first." He was obviously referring to the medic skills. That explained a lot, except for one thing.

"So why did she just try to kill me?" To her surprise, Sheidan relaxed as he scratched the back of his neck sheepishly with his free hand. Sakura saw her chance and turned around, immediately getting to her feet and throwing a punch at the man. Except he stopped her barehanded without even trying, his sheepish expression not ever leaving his face.

"This memory suppression jutsu gets hard to maintain. I messed up and sent the wrong indication to her brain when she woke up. It's an honest mistake, believe me. I have no intention to kill you."

Sakura frowned at that, things didn't make sense anymore. Why hadn't he just **asked** for her help then? "What?" Ino had asked, just as confused as her friend. Sheidan gave her an apologetic smile and pointed in her direction.

"I believe you have to take care of her first." Sakura didn't question that statement and started taking care of Ino's head right away, all along observing Sheidan, her curiosity about to get the best of her."

"See…" The man started as if on cue. "My father is a fervent enemy of Tsunade-sama. He wanted to know nothing about _asking_ for help from her. But his sickness can only be cured by a high level medical ninja. Which is where the idea of abducting you came. "

"If you had no intention of hurting either of us…" Ino interrupted, her voice letting a hint of apprehension filter through. "… then why did you **ask **me to kill her back at the village?"

Sheidan sighted and distractedly started rolling the kunai around his middle finger. "Had to make the whole thing believable. Give everyone incentive to send you guys here. Like I said, though, I never intended to hurt anyone."

Sakura had a hard time trusting this man, but he was a ninja, like them. Stronger than them, as well. There wasn't much she could do about it. So she finished up bandaging Ino's head and stood up in front of him. Man was he tall.

"If you're ready, please follow me." The man said, showing them the way to their unlocked cell door. Helping Ino up, Sakura followed his directions and soon enough they were in a well decorated room, complete with beautiful dressers and a huge bed in the middle, where laid a man that looked exactly like Sheidan, except his hair was all white.

"Father, I brought you Konoha's master medic's first apprentice. I believe she can do wonders with her skills, so she might be able to cure what conventional medicine couldn't."

The father rose his head and first gave Sakura a mean glare, before his traits softened. His voice had a prestige to it when it rose from his irritated and dry throat. "Are you the heir to the Haruno clan?"

Sakura frowned at the question. None of her close family were ninjas. How did he know about her? "I am, sir." She answered, trying to chase away the awkward feeling that was slowly settling into her stomach.

"Then yes, you can indeed help me out."

The old man proceeded to explain how he had been injured in a battle many years ago, and how that wound seemed to have resurfaced not so long ago. And to her surprise, a great uncle of hers was mentioned countless times in the stories of the nostalgic Hitsugaya leader. So Sheidan's identity hadn't been false, only he was part of the side of the clan who had gotten into an argument with Tsunade. As unfair as she felt it was towards her sensei, Sakura let the lion sleep and didn't try to fix things up, simply focusing on treating the man. Which she figured would take more than a day.

"Sheidan?" She asked when it had been a few hours past noon. The man looked at her inquisitively, and Sakura couldn't help but shiver seeing his eyes. They reminded her of Fubuki's. And Ike's… "Uh, our friend Yuhika will eventually find us and…"

With a bright smile Sheidan waved her off. "Don't worry, that was taken care of a while ago. Yuhika will not be able to track you down unless I let her."

"S'That what ya think, Sheishei?" A familiar voice came from behind Sakura, who didn't have to turn around to know who was there.

"You're seriously underestimating the Dasane clan." Yuhika added, walking up from the hallway into the room where everyone was.

"Actually, this is all thanks to Sakura's idea with the chakra beans…" Ike's hollow, yet playful voice resounded from somewhere above their heads.

Sakura smiled and winked at Sheidan as the three newcomers gathered around them.

"Well, I guess I didn't plan well enough, did I? I totally missed the chakra bean talk."

It was Yuhika's turn to wink at the red-haired man. "Don't worry, we all make mistakes. Glad to see this one wasn't ours or Konoha's."

Sheidan seemingly relaxed at Yuhika's words, and smiled too. "So I'm not in trouble, right?"

Hanmaru chuckled and put a gauntleted hand on his shoulder. "Just a little, pal."

--

A week later the whole gang was back from their mission and celebrating their success at the ramen shop. It turned out that Sheidan had actually plotted with Hanmaru and that the two were friends, and for both their sakes, the six ninjas had made up a story about how they had seduced the daycare owner and followed him into his headquarters where all the other memory-dead kids were held captive. His motive was that he needed memories to feed on to keep his normal human appearance. It was far-fetched, but even Sakura's brilliant mind hadn't come up with anything that made much more sense.

Tsunade had not exactly believed the story, and had given all of them a warning look. But since they were all okay she decided to be nice and let it go.

A while later Ino and Sakura were sitting against a tree in a clearing of the forest after a bit of training together, and the blonde had her head resting on the pinkette's shoulder. "I'm sorry for putting you through all of that." She repeated for what seemed like the hundredth time. Sakura sighed and petted Ino's hair gently.

"Stop it. I told you, it wasn't your fault at all. And Sheidan apologized a thousand times himself. Can we just sit quietly for once?"

Ino giggled and burrowed her head in Sakura's shoulder some more. "I love you forehead."

Sakura smiled and wrapped an arm around Ino's waist. "Love you too, pig."

* * *

**AN: **And that concludes this (crappy) Sequel to Promise of a Leaf. I will not lie, I am not very happy with the end result. I do believe that, although i rushed this chapter and the end of the story greatly (only 2 days of writing), the last one has that bit of humor that made you all love PoaL. As of late, Fan fiction hasn't been my cup of tea. My obsession (let's admit it) over the InoSaku pairing was mainly related to my love for my gf, and since that,s in jeopardy right now... It's a little hard to give it the render it previously had. It was nice to write some more light hearted stuff, though, since the project I'm currently working on is very dark and intense. If you're interested, head to my profile page where you'll find a link to my FP profile page. From which you can find **Code Meteor**. And a few of my poems. Check them out if you feel like it, I always appreciate reader input :)

I am NOT going to rework this fic, or PoaL. I am not all that interested anymore, and it would take too much time, anyway. I am not saying I'll drop fanfiction all together, but I can say itll take a while before I do again. I do want to thank all my faithful readers and reviewers. If you stood with me till the end, you deserve the honors :) All your comments were appreciated, and since I can't remember ever getting a flame, I'd like to keep my perfect record _. I will still lurk around, submit reviews once in a while. I am still supposed to be LWMWN's beta reader so... I will for sure keep taking care of that when I get a chance ;) You guys better keep reading it! lol.

On a side note, some of you might remember that poll about a one shot and a sexy situation. It was going to be a SakuNaru, titled "Whatever floats your boat". Tell you the truth, I have all the building up of the tension and the situation down. And I believe it seriously has a potential. But I can't write het sex, for some reason. Or well, i havent tried in a while, but yeah... If I ever get in a the mood and overcome that blockage, you might see the finished result pop up. But thats pretty unlikely. I just wanted to show you people I didn't forget ^^.

See yowzers, SakuInoserz! _::Bows:_:


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